


Drunk Ladybug on My Balcony? Yeah. This is Fine.

by Mikauzoran



Series: Productive Procrastination Prompt Giveaway [11]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrinette, Adrino, Aged-Up (20), Alya and Adrien are BrOTP, Alya destroys the Love Square because somebody had to, Alya sets up Ladybug and Adrien, Challenge Accepted, Drunk!Ladybug, Drunk!Marinette Dupain-Cheng, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Identity Reveal, Lady Noir - Freeform, Matchmaker Alya Césaire, Nino and Alya may have to fight over who’s BrOTP with Adrien, Platonic Adrino, Platonic Alyabug, Scheming Alya Césaire, Supportive Alya Césaire, Tikki Plots, Tikki Ships Ladrien Out of Desperation, adrienette - Freeform, ladrien, platonic alyadrien, platonic alyanette, slight angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-14
Updated: 2020-12-29
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:07:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 52,971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27564274
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mikauzoran/pseuds/Mikauzoran
Summary: Alya takes it in stride when Ladybug shows up on her balcony drunk and complaining about her unrequited love for Adrien Agreste. She puts her own feelings about discovering Ladybug’s identity aside to be a good friend and then makes it her mission to set Ladybug up with Adrien and break the infuriating love square wide open because it was high time somebody did.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Alya Césaire, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: Productive Procrastination Prompt Giveaway [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1922590
Comments: 665
Kudos: 432





	1. Crash Landing

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there! I'm Mikau. ^.^ It's lovely to meet you newcomers and a pleasure to see old friends as well. Thank you very much for checking out this story!
> 
> Back in September, I was procrastinating on writing Chapter Thirty-Eight of Serendipity, so I asked on Tumblr for people to send me prompts. I completed the first ten I received and then went back to working on Serendipity. That accomplished, I'm finishing the handful of overflow prompts I received after the cutoff. This is the first of the overflow prompts. It's from an anon. (Thank you so much for the prompt! ^.^ I know it's probably a little different from what you had in mind, but I hope you enjoy it anyway.)
> 
> Prompt: Alyanette/Alyabug balcony scene.
> 
> I hope you enjoy the story!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A drunken Ladybug crash lands on Alya's balcony and inadvertently gives away her secret identity. Alya tries to focus on being a good friend and saves the freaking out for later.

Alya glared at her screen, mentally doing battle against the article she needed to have done the next day.

So far, the article was winning.

She let out a groan of frustration, leaning back in her chair as far as it would recline.

Even the stucco texture on the ceiling seemed to mock her.

She was about ready to give up for the night and try to get some sleep so that she could mount a fresh assault on the article the following morning when something crashed into the glass of the sliding door leading out onto her tiny, mostly decorative balcony.

Alya jumped, her chair toppling, sending her to the floor with an impact almost as jarring as inciting incident.

Her first thought was that a bird had flown into the pane. Her brain quickly supplied that the bird must be the size of a vulture. The rational realization that there were no birds that big in the middle of Paris followed quickly on the heels of the vulture hypothesis.

Her next thought was, _“Akuma attack!”_ , but before she could further explore that possibility, she heard the akuma vulture cursing, and a knock came at her sliding door.

Frowning in apprehension, Alya picked herself up and grabbed the lamp off of her desk. She tiptoed over to the curtain, raising the lamp, prepared to strike, as she roughly threw the curtain back…and found Ladybug flat on her bum on Alya’s balcony.

Slowly, Alya lowered her makeshift weapon and blinked, perplexed, at her hero.

“Ladybug?”

She unlocked the sliding door and pushed it open, still gawking in amazement.

“Are you…okay?” she tentatively inquired, not entirely sure what the protocol was when Paris’s savior crashed into your sliding door.

“No,” Ladybug pouted, flopping back like a starfish in the limited space. “Alyaaaaa,” she whined, sounding disturbingly like Marinette. “I’m drunk.”

Alya nodded, taking this in stride. “I’m sorry. Do you…um…want to talk about it?”

Ladybug shook her head, moving her arms and legs as if she were making a snow angel. “I want to smash a pie in Adrien’s stupid face.”

Alya kept nodding as if this were all perfectly normal in hopes that if she just stuck with it, everything would eventually make sense. That was how akuma attacks usually went. You just had to hang in there until Ladybug’s magic set everything right, no matter how bizarre things got.

She wasn’t sure if the same logic applied to drunk Ladybug on her balcony, but she was willing to give it a shot because what else was she supposed to do?

“Why do you want to pie Adrien in the face?” Alya inquired conversationally.

Ladybug stuck out her bottom lip, slurring slightly, “He’s an idiot. Do you know what he did tonight? We were hanging out, and for, like, a solid hour he just kept asking for advice about the girl he’s liked for forever. It’s not _fair_ , Alya!”

Alya’s eyes went wide, her face paled, and her throat started to close up in a panic.

Up until about an hour ago, _Marinette_ had been having game night with Adrien, and, while it was possible for Ladybug to have shown up soon after Marinette had left, Alya was not betting on it.

“I can’t take it anymore!” Ladybug continued in a whine, completely unaware of Alya’s inner turmoil-excitement-panic-elation. “I’m so sick of being friend-zoned, Alya. I can’t do this anymore. I almost said something. I almost told him I loved him right then and there…but then I didn’t.” She blew out a frustrated breath, deflating. “I didn’t. I chickened out, and then I felt sick with myself, so I went and got drunk, and now I just feel sick period.”

“Marinette, you should have called me.” Alya clicked her tongue, pushing aside her own feelings about finally learning Ladybug’s identity to be there for her friend. She crouched down beside Ladybug and gently stroked her face, sweeping her bangs carefully off to the side.

“I thought about it,” Ladybug grumbled. “But I thought the suit would absorb the impact of some of the alcohol so I could get home okay without having to bother you because I know you’re working on that article for tomorrow, but…I feel really drunk. I couldn’t make it home, so…can I stay here for the night?”

“Sure thing,” Alya assured, carefully pulling Ladybug up to sitting. “Come on. Let’s get you inside, okay?”

“‘Kay,” Ladybug muttered moving her limbs sluggishly. “…I feel heavy.”

“Yeah, you do,” Alya grunted as she hauled Ladybug to her feet and half dragged her into the room and over to the bed.

“Oof!” she groaned, falling down onto the mattress with Ladybug half on top of her.

Ladybug burst out in a giggle fit. “I’m so drunk!”

“Shh,” Alya admonished even as she too laughed despite knowing full well that there was nothing funny about the situation.

Except for the fact that her best friend of nearly seven years was the superhero Alya idolized, klutzy future fashion designer Marinette Dupain-Cheng swung around Paris on a yoyo as she saved the city while wearing a decidedly unfashionable body-sock, and Ladybug had accidentally given away her identity because she was drunk off her keister.

Those things were a little funny.

“Shh,” Alya tried again, attempting to keep a straight face. “You’ll wake my family, and I don’t know how to explain Ladybug drunk in my bed.”

Ladybug giggled even harder before flopping over onto her back and giving Alya an impish smirk that came off somewhat silly what with the inebriation. “What? You mean they wouldn’t believe you were capable of getting Ladybug in bed or you think they would be mad at you for cheating on Nino?”

“Both,” Alya snorted, shaking her head as she pushed herself up. “Okay, Miss Superhero. If you’re staying the night, detransform. It’ll be less suspicious if my family wakes up to Marinette spending the night.”

“You’re so smart!” Ladybug gushed. “You are the smartest person, Alya. You come up with the best plans.”

“Yep,” Alya chuckled, ruffling Ladybug’s hair affectionately. “That’s me. The smart maker of plans. Now, detransform and I’ll get out some extra pyjamas for you to change into. I’m guessing you wore your ‘battle armor’ over to Adrien’s tonight? That dress won’t be comfy to sleep in.”

“He didn’t even notice,” Ladybug whimpered. “All that cleavage…wasted. Detransformation.”

Suddenly, Marinette was half-slumped on Alya’s bed in a [light blue dress](https://us.shein.com/Ruched-Detail-A-line-Dress-p-1248373-cat-1727.html) with an A-line skirt; puffy, ruffled sleeves down to the elbow; and a neckline that dipped just the right amount into flirty without being indecent. The colour really made Marinette’s eyes stand out even as red and swollen as they were now.

Inky trails of mascara were smeared down Marinette’s face, revealing just how miserable she had been.

“Oh, Sweetie,” Alya cooed, coming over to gently dab at Marinette’s face with a tissue. “He really did a number on you, didn’t he?”

Marinette only nodded and gave a cute little hiccup.

“It’ll be okay,” Alya soothed, petting her hair as she continued to clean up the damage. “You’re going to get through it. You’re Ladybug. What’s more, you’re Marinette Dupain-Cheng. No guy is ever going to keep you down. We’re going to get you through this.”

Marinette kept nodding until she suddenly stopped to remark, “I’m not feeling so well. I think I’m going to throw up.”

Alya quickly fetched the rubbish bin.

Thirty minutes later, Marinette was cleaned up, changed into pyjamas, given some crackers to help settle her stomach and absorb some of the alcohol, hydrated, and tucked into Alya’s bed, on her way to dreamland.

Alya gave a tired yet satisfied sigh at a job well done and went over to her desk in order to save the non-progress she had made on her obstinate article and shut her computer down for the night.

“Alya?” a small, tentative voice called, making Alya jump.

When she turned, she found a small, red creature floating uncertainly behind her.

“Oh. Hi. You must be Ladybug’s kwami,” she deduced once she got over the initial surprise.

“Tikki,” Tikki supplied with a little bow. “I just wanted to thank you for everything you’ve done for Marinette. You’re a good friend.”

Alya tried to wave away the praise, shaking her head modestly. “Thank you, Tikki, but no thanks are necessary. Dragging her in here and making sure she was okay was, like, bare minimum human decency.”

“No,” Tikki corrected with a bell-like chuckle of amusement. “I meant this whole time, all these years. You’ve always tried to look out for Marinette. Even when things didn’t turn out well, your heart was always in the right place.”

Alya grimaced, averting her gaze. “I don’t know. There have been times when I’ve royally screwed up,” she muttered, taking in Marinette’s sleeping form.

“Everyone makes mistakes,” Tikki comforted. “The important part is learning from your mistakes and doing what you can to make things right, and that’s exactly what you’ve done, Alya. You’re a good friend.”

Alya looked back at Tikki with searching eyes, almost afraid to hope. “You think so?”

Tikki nodded enthusiastically. “Definitely. Now, as a good friend to Marinette, there’s something I need you to do.”

Alya tipped her head to the side, nodding to show she was listening.

“I need you to get Adrien to tell you who this mystery girl he’s in love with is,” Tikki informed with the utmost solemnity.

Alya blinked. “Okay? But…why?”

“Because I’m tired of watching them both pining,” Tikki sighed, a hint of frustration to her voice. “I don’t care what you have to do, Alya. Get him to tell you who he’s in love with.”

“Challenge accepted,” Alya agreed, holding up her hand to the kwami so that they could high-five.

“One more thing,” Tikki announced with an air of gravity.

Alya leaned in closer. “Yes?”

“Do you have any cookies?” The serious look on Tikki’s face coupled with the request bordered on ludicrous, but Alya didn’t dare laugh.

“Uh…sure. Yeah. Let me just get them from the kitchen,” she offered.

“Perfect,” Tikki sighed in relief. “Marinette drank herself under the table tonight, and I’m still trying to process some of the alcohol I absorbed. I’m going to need to eat quite a bit to recharge.”

“Well, I’m sure it’s nothing compared to what you’re used to, what with living above a bakery, but I think we have a package of store-bought [boudoirs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladyfinger_\(biscuit\)) that you can help yourself to.”

Alya made a quick trip to the pantry, bringing back the biscuits for Tikki who happily munched away with fervor.

With an amused smile, Alya left the kwami to her business and headed for bed, locking her sliding door, drawing the curtain, and flicking off the lights before slipping in next to a lightly snoring Marinette.

She looped an arm around her friend’s waist, pulling Marinette in to snuggle. She nuzzled Marinette’s hair and pressed an affectionate kiss to her temple, whispering, “Don’t worry, Girl. Everything’s going to be all right. I’m going to _make_ it all right…. You fight so hard to protect everyone…well, know that I’ve got your back. No matter what.”

She drifted off to sleep plotting ways to fulfill the mission Tikki had given her.

Adrien Agreste wouldn’t know what hit him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How was that? I hope you enjoyed the story. This was actually a lot of fun. I rarely get to spend any time on Alya because she never fits into the stories I usually write, and I always feel bad about that. It was really nice to be able to explore her character a little here.
> 
> Did you have a favourite line or a favourite part? I think the story got a little silly in places. Inspiration to work on this struck at about nine thirty at night, so I stayed up writing it in one sitting. ^.^; I hope that's not reflected too much in the writing.
> 
> Also, would you guys be interested in a multichapter version of this where Alya sets up Ladybug and Adrien? I'm not a Ladrien writer, so I'm not sure how well it would go, but I do have some ideas for additional scenes. I kind of have a full writing schedule at the moment, but would an expanded version be something you all are interested in?
> 
> Thank you very much for reading. Take care!
> 
> Come follow me on [Tumblr](https://mikauzoran.tumblr.com/).
> 
> References:  
> Marinette Dress: https://us.shein.com/Ruched-Detail-A-line-Dress-p-1248373-cat-1727.html  
> Boudoirs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladyfinger_(biscuit)


	2. The Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette finds out she done goofed, and Alya tries to convince her it's okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! First off, thank you so much for all of the love and support this story has gotten so far. I am absolutely thrilled that so many people were interested in seeing a continuation. ^o^ Thank you for all of the comments, kudos, and bookmarks. I'm so grateful for your enthusiasm!
> 
> Please see the end notes for information on the update schedule and what I have planned for this story but, without further ado, here's Chapter Two. I hope you enjoy it. ^.^

Marinette awoke with her face buried in a familiar pair of breasts and feeling like she’d been hit in the face by an akumatized opera singer who had been turned into a backhoe all over again. (It was a rather unique experience that had occurred almost three years prior, but it was not something Marinette was likely to forget anytime soon. Getting clotheslined by the backhoe akuma had been more painful, but this was a very close second.)

“Alyaaaaaa,” she whined, not bothering to extract herself from the comfort of their snuggling position.

Alya groaned, rolling over onto her back and taking her squishy warmth with her. “What is it?” she inquired groggily, giving a stretch.

“I feel like _death_ ,” Marinette whimpered.

“I’m not surprised,” Alya hummed, sitting up and rubbing at her eyes. “You got yourself blind drunk last night. I practically had to scrape your carcass off of the floor and drag you in here.”

Marinette made an overly dramatic sound to emphasize her wretchedness. “I’m _dying_.”

Alya shook her head, chuckling as she ruffled her best friend’s hair fondly. “No, you’re not, you goof.”

“I feel like it,” Marinette grumbled, screwing her eyes closed against the light trickling in from the gap at the top of the curtains.

“Sit tight,” Alya instructed, crawling over Marinette and out of bed. “I’ll be back with some food, water, and pain pills. You going to be okay for, like, fifteen minutes?”

Marinette made a doubtful sound.

“Hang in there,” Alya encouraged, giving Marinette’s shoulder a gentle pat. “I’ll come back with some water before I start on the food.”

“Thanks,” Marinette replied sheepishly through her misery.

“No problem, Girl,” Alya assured. “What are friends for, right? I’ve got your back.”

Fifteen minutes later, Alya returned with a [croque madame](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croque_monsieur) sandwich and some pain killers.

“I read something about eggs and meat being good for hangovers,” she explained, carefully setting the tray down across Marinette’s lap.

“You are a godsend,” Marinette sighed happily as she dug into the meal, savoring the way the flavors and textures of the ham, bread, cheese, and egg combined in her mouth.

“I know I am.” Alya preened as she grabbed her desk chair and pulled it over next to the bed. “So…”

She bit her lip, looking down at the toast, jam, and banana she had grabbed for herself. “…How much of last night do you remember?”

“Not much,” Marinette responded through a mouthful of sandwich. She was almost already halfway done with it. “I remember Adrien is an idiot with no appreciation for beauty. I wore my ‘battle armor’ last night, and he _barely_ checked me out. Like, I’m beginning to think that he’s gay, Alya, and just doesn’t feel like he can tell anyone because of his stupid, controlling father.”

“Maybe he’s [demi](https://www.dictionary.com/e/gender-sexuality/demisexual/),” Alya suggested, trying to be helpful. “Maybe he doesn’t get attracted to people like that unless he’s in love with them or something.”

“I don’t know,” Marinette snorted, giving her head a dismissive toss to cover some of the hurt and frustration she was feeling. “I’m starting not to care. I’ve wasted enough of my time on this.”

“Time to try to get over him?” Alya very pointedly didn’t add “again” to the end of her sentence.

Marinette had been going through this cycle for the past seven years: she’d fall hard for Adrien when he did or said something particularly sweet or vulnerable that set her off, pursue him wholeheartedly for a while, get her hopes up only to invariably have them crushed, and then vow to get over him. She did her best for a month or two (or sometimes even five or six) to treat Adrien as a friend and push her romantic feelings for him aside…only for Adrien to do or say something that made her fall for him all over again.

Alya had learned long ago just to ride out the cycle and be there for her friend no matter what as it ran its course.

Marinette nodded sadly. “Yeah. I think it’s time. Last night was bad, Alya. I’m lucky I wasn’t akumatized. I need to get this under control.”

Alya nodded supportively.

Suddenly, Marinette looked up as if remembering something. “Oh, yeah. Thank you for last night. I’m sorry if I was a pain. I didn’t interrupt you working on your article, did I?”

“No, no.” Alya waved her concern away. “I was actually calling it quits for the night when you got here, so you didn’t interrupt anything.”

Marinette frowned, scanning her fuzzy, fractured memories. “When I got here? Did I take a cab or something?”

Alya bit her lip, knowing that it was time to come clean. “Marinette, don’t freak, but you crashed landed onto my balcony.”

Marinette blinked several times, lips moving slowly around the words, repeating, “crashed on your balcony” under her breath, trying to make sense of it. “How did I…?”

She nearly dropped her sandwich as her eyes widened as she realized what must have happened.

“No,” she gasped. “Nonononono. No.” She began to laugh, on the edge of hysteria.

“Marinette, listen to me,” Alya commanded, setting her plate aside so she could move onto the bed beside her friend. She grabbed Marinette’s hands and squeezed them tight. “Everything is fine, so don’t freak out.”

“Don’t freak out?” Marinette giggled. “Don’t freak out? I can’t—Do you even _know_ how—”

“—Marinette, calm down,” Tikki coaxed, coming out of hiding to assist Alya in breaking the news.

“Tikki, how am I supposed to calm down?” Marinette squeaked, clearly panicking. “My identity—! I can’t—!”

“Shh,” Alya cooed, wrapping her arms around Marinette as she began to tremble and hyperventilate. “It’s going to be all right. Your identity is safe with me, Marinette. I promise you that. No one else is going to find out, and I’m not telling anyone, even if they torture me. I promise.”

“You’re not… But what about the Ladyblog?” Marinette asked, pulling back just enough to peer up at Alya, looking mystified. “You’re not going to write an article?”

Alya could only stare at her friend for a moment in utter disbelief. “You really think I would do that?”

Marinette had to think about it for a minute. “…I don’t…know? …No?”

“ _No_ ,” Alya stressed in a tone that left no doubt concerning the matter. “No, Marinette. I would _never_ ,” she assured with a quiet solemnity. “I get it. Maybe I didn’t when I was thirteen and superheroes and akumas were new and exciting. I know I was obsessed with finding out your identity for a time, but it’s different now.”

“It is?” Marinette whispered, feeling lost, confused, and afraid.

Alya nodded, reaching up to pet Marinette’s hair gently. “I know I’m still a little fanatical about my blog and capturing the footage and getting the scoop, and I know I do those speculation posts about your identity, but…I would _never_ publish this sort of thing when it could put you and all of Paris in danger.”

Alya took a deep breath and swallowed at the resurgence of dark memories. “I know what it felt like for me when my identity was exposed. I know how it felt to be terrified that Papillon was going to come after me as a civilian or attack my family and friends to get to me. I know what it was like for me to be outed, and I would never do that to someone else, especially not you.”

“Oh,” Marinette breathed, finally starting to feel the air enter and exit her lungs normally again.

Alya nodded, cupping Marinette’s cheek and giving it a loving pat as she smiled reassuringly. “You are my best friend, and I would never put you through that. And I get how important it is to keep Ladybug’s identity a secret, not just for you but to keep all of Paris safe. Even if it wasn’t you, who I love like family, I still would never have published Ladybug’s identity. I’m not a dumb kid anymore,” she explained softly. “I get it. I really get it, Marinette, so don’t worry. You’re safe. Okay?”

Alya held Marinette’s gaze for a long moment as Marinette searched her face, heartrate gradually coming down as she realized that there was no danger.

Slowly, Marinette began to nod, and a tentative smile spread across her lips. “Okay. Yeah. Okay. Okay…. Thank you.”

“No thanks necessary,” Alya assured, pulling away and going back to her breakfast. “I’ve got your back, Girl.”

Marinette blew out a sigh of relief, closing her eyes and sitting quietly for a moment before wearily returning to her croque madame.

“You okay?” Alya sought to verify.

Marinette laughed self-deprecatingly, shaking her head. “I am such an idiot.”

Alya clicked her tongue. “No, you’re not. You’re a crazy genius.”

“No,” Marinette insisted, taking a savage bite of her sandwich. “I’m dumb. Super dumb. I bet Chat Noir has never gotten drunk and crashed onto anyone’s balcony and exposed his secret identity through sheer stupidity.”

“Girl, I’ve met Chat Noir. I’m sure he’s done plenty of other dumb things,” Alya snorted flatly. “So, you screwed up once in seven years. It’s a big deal, but it’s not the end of the world or anything. It’s just me, and the buck stops here.”

“But what if I screw up again?” Marinette fretted down at her sandwich.

“Don’t get so drunk in the future,” Alya suggested matter-of-factly. “If you _do_ want to get that drunk, have me there to chaperone so you don’t crash into anyone else’s sliding glass doors trying to get home. It’s that simple. Problem solved.”

Marinette pressed her lips together, considering for a moment. “I mean… Yeah, but…”

“But nothing,” Alya dismissed her arguments with a wave. “This is the first time you’ve slipped up like this, right?”

“Yeah. So?” Marinette shot Alya a quizzical look.

“So, I’ve given you a fool-proof solution to the only problem you’ve encountered in the past seven years,” Alya replied confidently. “There’s no point in worrying about solutions for problems you haven’t run into yet and can’t anticipate. The case is closed, so enjoy your sandwich and tell me all about what it’s like to be Ladybug already. I’ve been dying for the exclusive all this time. Marinette, you’re killing me.”

A bout of giggles caught Marinette by surprise, and she found herself genuinely smiling at her friend. “You won’t publish any of this?”

“Not a word,” Alya swore, holding up her hand as if taking an oath. “So, spill. What’s Chat Noir like? You _know_ I ship you two. What are Catboy’s chances? You two have kissed before, right? Is he a good kisser? Do you two have a secret thing? Have you been holding out on me, Marinette Dupain-Cheng?”

“Alya,” Marinette groaned.

“Marinette,” Alya parroted, a wide, self-satisfied smirk stretching from one ear to the other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you go. What did you think? Was there a particular line you liked best? What do you think of my characterization of Alya? She's kind of new-ish for me. She doesn't usually get much screen time in my stories, so I'm not used to her being the focus character. ^.^; I hope you liked it.
> 
> This chapter was still on the short side, but future chapters are coming out longer. I'm working on Chapter Five right now. Chapters Three and Four are each about three thousand words. 
> 
> Anyway. Here's my game plan for this story: Chapters Three and Four are Alya trying to get information out of Adrien about his crush and learning a whole lot more than she bargained for in the process. Also, wholesome Alyadrien friendship and bonding. Chapter Five is kind of a mixed bag. It starts off with Alya and Marinette, moves into Lady Noir, and then finishes with an Alya and Chat Noir scene. Chapter Six is where I'm planning for the Ladrien content to start. There will probably be a seventh chapter (more Ladrien) because I tend to underestimate how long my stories are going to be/how many words a scene will be. 
> 
> That's the plan so far. How does that sound? Do we like the sound of this? I have to say, I'm really enjoying writing all this friendship fluff. ^.^ Thank you again for encouraging me to expand this story.
> 
> The next order of business is the update schedule. I hope to finish Chapters Five and Six this weekend and wrap up the story sometime next week. Like I said, I already have Chapters Three and Four done, so I just need to edit them. When do you want updates? I was thinking Tuesdays and Fridays because I'm already updating Serendipity on Wednesdays and Saturdays. What would you guys like? Tuesday/Friday? Thursday/Sunday? Monday/Thursday? Talk to me.
> 
> Thank you very much for reading, guys. Let me know what you thought, and I'll see you again soon. At this point, I'm thinking Tuesday, 11/24/2020. Take care!
> 
> References:  
> Croque Madame: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croque_monsieur  
> Demisexual: https://www.dictionary.com/e/gender-sexuality/demisexual/


	3. The Mission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alya successively attempts to extract the name of Adrien's crush first from Nino and then from Adrien to no avail. She does, however, gain other interesting information in the process.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! I hope you're doing well. Happy Tuesday. Thank you very much to everyone who commented, left kudos, and bookmarked the story. ^.^ I'm really glad that you're enjoying the expanded story so far. Today, we have some DJ Wifi and platonic Alyadrien.
> 
> I hope you enjoy Chapter Three!

Alya turned so that she was kneeling on the seat of the couch, draping herself over the back of it to smile beguilingly at her boyfriend as he moved about the Césaires’ kitchen. “Soooo…”

Nino paused, looking up from the vegetable and hummus plate he was preparing to arch an eyebrow at Alya. “‘So’?”

“You know who this mystery girl who Adrien is in love with is,” Alya asserted matter-of-factly.

Nino frowned in confusion. “Yeah?”

Alya nodded, looking at him expectantly.

The furrows in his brow deepened. “So…what?”

“So, who is she?” Alya sighed in exasperation at his inability to read between the lines and divine her aim.

Nino returned his attention to arranging cherry tomatoes, baby carrots, and thin slices of zucchini onto the plate. “Al, I know you’re just trying to be a good friend to Marinette by helping to set her up with Adrien, but the identity of his crush is something he told me in confidence after _years_ of secrecy, and I know it’s not something he’d be okay with me telling people, even you.”

“Oh, come _on_ ,” Alya whined, sticking out her bottom lip in a pout. “ _Baaabe_.”

Nino shook his head, beginning to clean up the knives he’d used to cut the vegetables and the blender he’d made the hummus in. “Nope. Don’t ‘Babe’ me, Al. My lips are sealed.”

“But it’s really important,” she groaned.

“I love you, Alya, but Adrien trusted me with this,” Nino explained patiently, aware that his girlfriend didn’t always see reason when she was on the scent of a scoop. “Bros don’t tell their bros’ secrets, even to the women they love. I’m sorry.”

“But Ladybug’s kwami gave me a quest to find out who Adrien’s crush is!” Alya protested.

Nino paused in the middle of rinsing the blender to turn and look back at his girlfriend with an odd expression. “ _Ladybug’s_ kwami did?”

Alya nodded earnestly. “I told you it was important.”

Nino hummed thoughtfully, weighing this new information. “That’s…very interesting.”

“So, you’ll tell me now?” Alya inquired hopefully.

Nino pursed his lips, considering. “…No,” he decided, turning off the faucet and placing the dirty dishes into the dishwasher. “I don’t think I should. Adrien doesn’t want people knowing, and I respect that.”

“Oh, come _on_ ,” Alya groaned again, dropping her head to the back of the couch in defeat.

“Sorry, Al,” he chuckled, bringing the hummus and vegetable plate over to the living room area and setting it down on the coffee table so they could snack on it as they watched their superhero movie of the week.

“You suck,” she grumbled, turning around and slumping into the couch cushions.

Nino smirked, sliding in beside her and giving her temple an affectionate smooch. “Insert obligatory sexual innuendo here.”

Alya rolled her eyes, slipping an arm around his shoulders. “Hush. I’m mad at you. Stop being cute.”

“Sorry,” he chuckled, reaching for the remote. “It just happens sometimes.”

“Sorry I’m late,” Adrien greeted a little breathlessly (as if he had run to get there) as he slid onto the bench seat across from Alya at the on-campus café. “Fencing practice ran a little late, and my father would kill me if I went out in public un-showered afterwards, so…”

“No worries,” Alya assured, pushing the remains of her pain aux raisins across the table to him. “Eat. You must be starving. I’ll go up and get your drink.”

“I love you so much,” Adrien declared with misty eyes as he eagerly scooped up the pastry and took a small, polite bite that did nothing to betray how hungry he actually was because God forbid anyone get a picture of Adrien Agreste scarfing down baked goods.

His father would ground him for bringing dishonor upon the company and for tarnishing the family name.

Alya really hated Gabriel Agreste. That was a large part of the reason why she wanted to get Adrien married off so he could live a happy, peaceful life with Marinette who would smoother him with the love he deserved and not exert control over every aspect of his life.

“I know,” Alya chuckled, getting to her feet and giving her friend a warm smile as she pushed her righteous anger to the back of her mind. “What are you drinking today? [Cappuccino? Latte? _Mocha_?](https://www.tasteofhome.com/article/types-of-coffee/)” she tempted.

“Just a cortado, please,” he replied, fishing out his wallet.

Alya rolled her eyes and waved away his money. “What? Watching your weight? I’m getting you a flat white. I’m sure you burned enough calories for a full-sized drink during fencing.”

She turned on her heel and headed for the counter before he could protest.

She returned shortly with the promised drink and a pain au chocolat, grinning as she saw Adrien’s smile expand in delight.

“You are the best person,” he breathed, looking like he was about to cry in gratitude.

“You’re too easy, Agreste,” she chuckled, setting down her purchases and retaking her seat. “So…you and Kagami…”

Adrien quirked an eyebrow, pausing with the coffee cup halfway to his lips. “I just saw her at fencing. What about Kagami and me?”

“Is anything romantic going on between you two? I’m asking for a friend,” she fibbed smoothly without actually lying.

Adrien laughed, setting his cup down as he shook his head. “Kagami and me? No. No way. I mean, I know we kind of had a bit of a will-we-won’t-we thing going on when we first met, but we decided we were better just as friends. She’s like a sister to me now. Besides, Kagami already has a gir—uh—someone she’s seeing,” he quickly corrected, holding his breath and hoping that Alya wouldn’t make out what he had been about to say.

One look at the surprised, open-mouthed expression on her face told him that there was no such luck.

“Kagami has a—”

“—Shhh!” Adrien cut her off, waving his hands as best as he could in the limited space to silence her. “It’s a secret,” he hissed, looking around to see if anyone had heard. Fortunately, it didn’t seem like anyone was paying attention. “Kagami’s mother would flip if she found out, and Chloé and Kagami would never speak to me again, so…please?” he begged frantically.

Alya’s eyes grew even wider. “ _Chloé_?!” she spat incredulously, keeping her voice low. “Kagami and _Chloé_?”

Adrien buried his face in his hands, groaning in misery. “Somebody put duct tape over my mouth already. I shouldn’t be permitted to speak. Maybe my father is right, and I _should_ just stay quiet and look pretty.”

“I wouldn’t go quite that far,” Alya snorted, reaching across the table to gently peel Adrien’s hands off of his face. She gave them a bolstering squeeze and smiled encouragingly. “Chin up, Sunshine. No one’s going to hear about this from me. Promise.”

“Thank you,” he whimpered meekly, shoulders slumping in exhausted relief for a moment before he collected himself and resumed his perfect posture.

“No worries,” she assured, releasing his hands. “Eat your pastry, you goof.”

“Thanks,” he sighed, happy to comply.

“So…” she led in, taking a sip of her own chai tea latte.

He looked at her and inclined his head slightly to show he was listening.

“Are you involved with anyone romantically right now?” she inquired conversationally.

His gaze dropped to the table between them, and a melancholy air washed over him. “No. I’m not,” he grumbled with a sigh, and Alya got the impression that this was a sore subject.

She should think so, seeing as he had supposedly been in love with the same girl for seven years with no hope in sight.

“You sound kind of wistful,” she noted carefully, wary of pressing the wrong button. “Got someone in mind?”

“Yeah,” he muttered into his flat white. “Fat lot of good it’s doing me.”

“Who is it?” she asked in unfeigned concern. “Anyone I know?”

He shrugged sullenly. “I don’t really want to talk about it, Alya.”

“Okay, but…if you tell me who she is, maybe I can help set you two up,” she offered, feeling a little bad now for calling him out to manipulate him into revealing the identity of his crush under false pretenses.

He shook his head and gave her a tired, forced smile. “Thanks, Alya, but I don’t think anyone can help me. I think maybe I just need to finally give up on her changing her mind about me.”

“Oh,” Alya replied quietly, pensively biting her lip as she contemplating her next move and what would be best for both Marinette and Adrien.

“It’s hard,” he confessed down at his pain au chocolat. “Over the past few years, it’s felt like we’ve grown a lot closer. I know I’m important to her, and she _does_ love me in her own way. It’s just not the same way I love her, but…from time to time, just when I’m about to finally give up for good and try to move on, she’ll do or say something that makes me feel like maybe I do have a chance if I just hang on a little longer. Every time,” he reiterated with a bitter smile, “it’s just enough to keep me going for another six months, another year…but I think I need to call it quits for real this time. It’s been seven years, and nothing’s changed.”

Alya abruptly decided that she did _not_ like this girl Adrien was pining after. She began to think that Tikki had intended for Alya to find out the identity of this girl, track her down, and eliminate her so that Adrien could get over her already and move on to see how wonderful Marinette was, and then they could both live happily ever after.

“Yeah, no,” Alya snorted decisively. “Adrien my cupcake, no offence, but this girl sounds like she’s using you.”

He blinked at her, utterly taken aback. “What? N-No. She’s not. She’s just… She told me from the very start that she was in love with someone else. _I’m_ the one being stupid waiting around for her to get over that guy. I’m the one misinterpreting the things she says and does and letting myself have hope. She’s never once led me on, Alya.”

She shook her head, giving him a pitying look. “Adrien, I know you love her, so you think the world of her, but it sounds to me like she’s playing with you like a yoyo to make herself feel better about the other guy who doesn’t return her feelings.”

He opened and closed his mouth several times, trying and failing to come up with a better argument than, “No. You’re wrong”.

“Hey,” Alya called gently, reaching out and taking his hand in hers. “Maybe I’m completely off base. Maybe I’m dead wrong, and she really is wonderful, and this is all an honest misunderstanding, but you’re my friend, Adrien, and I’m worried about you, okay?”

He swallowed and nodded, not quite trusting his voice yet.

“You’re one of the best people I know, and you deserve to be happy and loved right now, and, from what I’m hearing, it doesn’t sound like this girl is good for you. Maybe it’s totally not her fault, but that doesn’t change the fact that she’s hurting you. You with me?” she verified softly, as if she were patiently explaining something to the twins.

He nodded again, resignedly this time. “Yeah. I get what you’re saying…and I think maybe you’re right. Even if La—er…” He froze, searching Alya’s face in a panic to see if he’d given himself away.

She leaned forward eagerly. “Go on. ‘Even if Lay’…what?”

Adrien breathed a sigh of relief, sitting back and pulling his hand gently out of Alya’s. “Even if she doesn’t mean to, she’s hurting me, and it’s not good to keep myself in this never-ending loop. It’s not healthy.”

Alya stuck her lip out in a pout when she realized that she wasn’t going to get more than the first syllable of a name.

“Thanks, Alya,” he continued with the beginnings of an authentic smile. “I really appreciate you looking out for me. It means a lot.”

“Sure thing, Cupcake. Any time,” she promised, letting go of her frustration as she comforted herself with the fact that Adrien was bound to slip up sooner or later. “And I really mean that. Any time you need someone in your corner or someone to talk to, I’m there. You’re more to me than just my future-husband’s best friend, you know? I really do care about you, even if I’m crap at showing it sometimes.”

“Thanks,” he repeated, looking genuinely touched as his eyes turned dewy and a light blush rose on his cheeks. “Seriously. Thank you. I care about you too, Alya. I’d still hang out with you, even if you weren’t my best friend’s soulmate.”

“Bros?” Alya held up her fist, offering it to him.

“Bros,” he affirmed, lightly bumping his fist to hers.

At the contact, they both pulled back, making cartoonish explosion sounds as their hands opened, fingers spread wide.

They then promptly broke out in giggles.

“So,” Adrien remarked timidly once they’d both settled down. “Concerning moving on and getting over my unrequited love…”

Alya arched an eyebrow. “Yeah?”

“How exactly does one accomplish that?” he inquired sheepishly, hand going up to rub at the back of his neck. “Any advice you could give would be seriously appreciated.”

Alya grinned like a fox at this unexpected perfect segue. “I am glad you asked. Typically, the best way to get over someone who’s not healthy for you is to date around and find someone who is.”

Adrien pursed his lips, not so sure about this advice. “I don’t know, Alya. I kind of tried that with Kagami, and it was sort of disastrous.”

“Yeah,” she agreed, “but you and Kagami didn’t work out, and you never really tried again after that, did you? I mean, I’ve never seen you in a relationship…unless you’ve been really discreet, and I just missed it?” She tipped her head to the side in question.

He looked back down at his plate, picking up the pain au chocolat and muttering, “No, my love life just really is nonexistent,” into it.

Alya hummed, not impressed. “Okay. So, you tried moving on once, and it didn’t work out, so you gave up. Well, you’re older and wiser now, so maybe twenty-year-old Adrien will have better luck with this than fourteen-year-old Adrien.”

“I doubt it,” Adrien grumbled ruefully around a mouthful of pastry.

“How about we suspend our misgivings for a sec and just try it?” she suggested. “You want to be in a loving, healthy, uplifting relationship, don’t you?”

“Yes,” he sulked, unable to get past his doubts.

“Have you ever considered dating Marinette?” Alya smoothly put it out there.

Adrien nearly choked. “ _Marinette_?” he repeated incredulously, eyes going comically wide. “As in Marinette Dupain-Cheng?”

Alya frowned, irked by this response. “Yeah.”

“Marinette and _me_?” he laughed at the very idea, and Alya started to think that maybe Adrien Agreste was unworthy of her best friend until he continued, “Alya, Marinette is, like, lightyears out of my league. If I asked her on a date, she’d laugh at me because she’d think it was a joke, and then she’d feel really bad when she realized I was in earnest because Marinette Dupain-Cheng is a serious contender for best human being ever.”

Internally, Alya smiled because that was exactly the right answer, and she was going to see these two married and happy if it killed her.

“Like, what would she even see in me, Alya?” Adrien sighed, taking a disheartened sip of his gradually cooling flat white. “Marinette’s so cool and funny and clever and compassionate and creative and…I mean, not to even mention how gorgeous she is…”

He sighed again, shaking his head. “I wouldn’t stand a chance with her.”

“Why not?” Alya prompted, very satisfied with the information she had collected. “You’re rich. You’re smart. You’re literally a model.”

“Marinette doesn’t care about superficial stuff like that,” he snorted, waving away her counterarguments. “I mean, me being smart is a plus, but it’s just book smarts. I have very little practical knowledge like how to pay bills or cook or clean a house. I’m a huge dork, I’m clingy and needy and emotional and—”

“—Who the hell told you that rot?” Alya growled, cutting him off.

Adrien blinked at her, surprised. “I mean…I don’t think anyone ever told me that exactly, but…I guess those are the things Father complains about most, so…” He shrugged helplessly. “…I don’t think Marinette would really go for someone like me, Alya.”

Alya clicked her tongue, giving her head an indignant shake. “Adrien, you are seriously one of the sweetest, best people I’ve ever met. Like, seriously. You’re always so optimistic and happy and kind, even when the world gives you crap. You’re a genuinely good person, and there’s a lot about you that anyone with half a braincell could love. You need to ditch this negative self-image you’ve got because, I’m telling you, it’s bull.”

“…You really think so?” he asked hopefully, wanting to believe it.

She gave an indignant snort. “Boy, I wouldn’t have said it if I didn’t think so. When have you ever known me _not_ to speak my mind?”

“Never,” he chuckled, mood brightening.

“Exactly,” she harrumphed. “So, when I tell you that you’re amazing, you know I mean it, and you know I’m right because I’m always right, right? Don’t you dare disagree with me, Agreste.”

He broke out in a full-on laugh at that, nodding as a wide, shining smile stretched across his lips. “I wouldn’t dare.”

“Good.” She couldn’t keep a straight face any longer, and a broad grin twisted up the corners of her mouth as well. “In all seriousness, Adrien, you should think about asking Marinette out. She adores you, and you obviously have quite the hefty crush on her as well, judging by how you were so easily able to wax poetic about how awesome she is earlier. You should give it a chance. She’d be good for you.”

He dropped his gaze back down to the table, his smile dimming as he rubbed at the back of his neck. “I don’t know, Alya. I mean…I do like her. I could see myself maybe able to fall for her, but my feelings for the other girl have been so strong for so long, they’ve kind of gotten in the way. I don’t want to mess things up with Marinette. I admire her so much, and she’s one of the best friends I have. I seriously screwed up with Kagami and almost lost her friendship forever, and I don’t want to take that risk with Marinette. She’s too important to me.”

Alya bit the inside of her cheek, simultaneously fighting the urge to crack her skull open on the table because this was too dumb and, at the same time, swooning because the boy was painfully sweet and romantic. She could see what her best friend found so attractive.

“Besides,” he went on as an afterthought, “she doesn’t think of me that way. She’s told me several times. She was just a really big fan of my father’s work when we were younger, and she just thinks of me as a friend, so…”

Alya almost stormed out of the café to go find and shake Marinette. “She told you that?”

Adrien nodded. “Yeah. I mean, there were a couple times when I started to get the wrong idea, and, when I asked her about it, she told me, so I know she doesn’t have feelings for me like that.”

Alya pursed her lips. “Well. Maybe if you turn up the charm and flirt with her a little to let her know you’re interested, she’ll change her mind.”

Adrien blinked. “But…I already flirt with her. You know. For fun. Like what I do with Nino. Well,” he backtracked, “not as explicitly as Nino and I flirt, but…”

“Flirt harder,” Alya demanded, almost losing her cool as she realized the futility of her seven years of work trying to get those two idiots to kiss already.

Adrien didn’t look convinced. “I don’t know, Alya. Like I said, I’m not sure I want to risk my friendship with Marinette over this.”

“Think about it, okay?” she stressed, reluctantly accepting that it was mostly out of her hands.

All she could do was keep encouraging Adrien to make a move because trying to get Marinette to confess her feelings hadn’t worked so far, and Alya doubted that it would even make a difference if she told Marinette what Adrien said about how much he admired her and thought he might be able to fall for her. Marinette probably wouldn’t believe her, and Alya knew that, brave as her friend was, she didn’t have the courage to be honest about her feelings with Adrien. If Adrienette was going to happen, Adrien would need to make the first move.

“Marinette’s response might surprise you,” she encouraged. “You don’t have to confess undying love or ask her to marry you or even commit to being her boyfriend. Just think about asking her on a date. Super chill. No pressure. Just. One. Date. Okay?”

“…Okay,” he hesitantly agreed. “I’ll think about it.”

“Good.” She blew out a long breath, exhaling the stress. “Now. Moving on to things of vital importance. Are you coming over for movie night on Friday, or has your father plotted against us yet again?”

Adrien burst out laughing at her deathly serious facial expression and tone of voice. “Oh, I will absolutely be there, even if I have to sneak out.”

“Good. I love him dearly, but Nino has crap taste in foreign films,” Alya snickered. “You bring the movie; I’ll supply the snacks.”

“Epic,” Adrien chuckled, shooting Alya a conspiratorial wink. “Have you ever seen Guillermo del Toro’s [Crimson Peak](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimson_Peak)?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, I actually immensely enjoyed finally getting the chance to write Alya and Adrien just chilling and being friends. They're not shown as particularly close in canon (do they ever really talk to each other? I don't think they've ever had a prolonged, one-on-one conversation, honestly. :/ BFG, you're my canon expert. Do you know anything about this?), but I would think that after years of being thrown together they would develop their own genuine friendship. I headcanon that they're foreign film night buddies.
> 
> Anyway! I hope you enjoyed the chapter. What did you think of my portrayal of Adrien and Alya's relationship? Do you think you could see them eventually coming to be friends like this? Thoughts? Feelings? Burning questions?
> 
> Has anyone noticed the chapter count slowly inching up? XD This always happens to me, I swear. I think I'm only going to write a few thousand words, but once I get going I can't seem to stop. ^.^; I started thinking that this would be three or four chapters, and then it was six or seven. Now it's eight. I think that's my final answer. I'm writing Chapter Seven right now, so I should finish up this weekend and have a definite chapter count then. Oh well. I guess it's just more content for you to read. I'm going to assume that's a good thing. XD (Don't tell me if otherwise.)
> 
> Next chapter is more Alyadrien fluffy friendship. It'll be out on Friday, 11/27/2020. I hope you'll look forward to it.
> 
> Thanks for reading!
> 
> References:  
> Types of Coffee: https://www.tasteofhome.com/article/types-of-coffee/  
> Crimson Peak: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimson_Peak


	4. Second Attempt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More Adrien being flustered about Marinette.  
> More Alya teasing Adrien.  
> More friendship fluff.  
> Also, Alya finally discovers the identity of Adrien's crush...only to end up more confused than she started.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all! Please ignore the slowly increasing chapter count. ^.^ (Please. -.-;) In other news, Happy Friday! I hope you're all doing well. Thank you for joining me for Chapter Four! I'm super grateful for all the love and support this story is getting. I'm really glad you're enjoying it so far.
> 
> I hope you enjoy the Alyadrien fluff in this chapter as well.

“Oh, yeah,” Alya snickered, flicking a piece of popcorn at Adrien about a meter away on the Césaires’ couch.

“‘Oh, yeah’ what?” he inquired conversationally as he grabbed the popcorn out of the air and placed it in his mouth.

Alya mentally cursed Adrien’s catlike reflexes but did not let the minor setback spoil her fun.

She smirked puckishly. “What did you think of Marinette’s dress last weekend?”

Adrien bashfully averted his eyes as a heatwave washed over his skin, leaving him looking like a baked lobster.

“Don’t tease me,” he whined. “I take it you saw the dress yourself?”

“Yep.” She let the p go with a satisfying pop as she launched another piece of popcorn at him.

In his distraction, he failed to dodge and ended up with popcorn down his shirt.

“Thoughts?” she prodded.

He grumbled as he retrieved the errant snack and threw it back at her, making her cackle. “The dress was _gorgeous_ , Alya. Oh my gosh,” he began to gush, much to Alya’s delight. “The way the blue of the dress brought out the blue of her eyes… I think I stared for, like, a full ten seconds before I caught myself.”

“Only ten seconds?” Alya snorted, insulted on Marinette’s behalf.

“You play video games, don’t you?” He clicked his tongue back at her. “If you did, you’d know that ten seconds is an _eternity_. Especially when a pretty girl is standing in your doorway waiting for you to let her in or say hi or something and you’re just standing there gaping at her like an idiot, not able to remember how to speak French. I swear I almost greeted her in Mandarin, Alya. It was _bad_.”

He turned to give her a dirty look. “Stop laughing at my suffering.”

“Can’t help it,” she giggled, slumping back into the couch and bringing her feet up to rest on the seat cushion. She set the popcorn bowl down on her stomach, bracing it against her thighs. “I am highly amused by the mental image of Adrien freaking Agreste, supermodel (registered trademark) totally losing his cool.”

“There was nothing amusing about it,” he sulked, reaching over to grab and handful of popcorn. He flicked two pieces at her and ate the rest. “I’m sure Marinette thought I was a total weirdo.”

“I’m sure she was too busy thinking about how dreamy you looked to notice,” Alya assured, knowing he’d never believe her because her friends really were the biggest pair of oblivious idiots and were clearly made for one another.

“Stooooop,” Adrien whined. “You’re being mean. I’m going to tell Nino you’re picking on me.”

“I guarantee that, when you explain to him exactly how I’m teasing you about your crush on Marinette by telling you that she has a crush on you too, Nino is going to face-palm, shake his head, and sigh, ‘Mec’ in exasperation,” she informed flatly, a little bit tempted to bang her head against something.

“…Meanie,” Adrien retorted, sticking out his tongue.

“You are, like, five years old,” she clucked, sticking her own tongue out right back at him.

“Anyway,” Adrien sighed, looking down at the roasted chickpeas in the dish on the coffee table. “I don’t think Marinette realized how low-cut that dress was. You might want to just happen to mention it sometime. I didn’t want to say anything because I didn’t want to embarrass her or make her self-conscious or make her think I was, like, _looking_ or anything, because I’m not a creep like that. And I didn’t want her to think she was making me uncomfortable because she wasn’t—just flustered a little—and I didn’t want her to think that she should leave to go change, so…”

“Cupcake,” Alya snickered, trying very hard not to full-on laugh. “your face is so red right now, and I don’t know if it’s because you’re thinking about Marinette’s boobs or if you’re trying _not_ to think about Marinette’s boobs, but I am so amused right now.”

“Stop!” Adrien protested, swatting at her half-heartedly. “I didn’t look! I’m a gentleman, and gentlemen don’t think about women’s anatomy!”

“Oh, you pure, sweet thing!” Alya cackled, setting the popcorn bowl aside so that she could clutch her stomach as she belly-laughed at Adrien’s expense. “Have you considered that maybe she _wanted_ you to look? Maybe she was trying to seduce you.”

“I hate you,” Adrien pouted, crossing his arms and sticking out his bottom lip. “This isn’t nice, Alya. This is bullying.”

Alya immediately stopped laughing when she saw the way his eyes shimmered with building tears. She sat up and moved the popcorn out of the way again so that she could scoot in close.

“Hey,” she called softly, tentatively reaching out to place a hand on his arm. “Are you actually upset?”

He shrugged, avoiding her gaze. “…No.”

She frowned, not believing him for a second. “Yes, you are.”

“I’m not,” he mumbled without conviction. “I know you’re just teasing. I know that that’s what friends do.”

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean that you’re not still upset,” she replied patiently. “I’m really sorry, Adrien. I didn’t realize I was pushing too far. Next time when you want me to cut it out, just say that you’re being serious and you for real want me to quit. I’m sorry. I thought you were joking when you told me to stop before.”

“I kind of was,” he admitted. “It just escalated really fast.”

She nodded, pulling him into a side-hug. “Sorry. I’ll try to be mindful of that in the future and not take things so far.”

“Thanks,” he sighed. “It’s stupid, but…I just really can’t take being teased about someone liking me, especially when I know it’s not true because…”

He bit his lip, turning his head to meet her eyes and search her face, trying to decide whether or not to open up to her.

She waited patiently, not breaking eye contact, letting him talk at his own pace.

He took a deep breath. “So…no one I like ever returns my feelings, and that kind of sucks. Nothing I’ve ever done has made the girl I’m in love with think I was worth taking a chance on, and even though Kagami liked me at first, she was the one to call an end to our kinda-sorta-maybe dating because, she told me, I wasn’t a good fit for her. I wasn’t decisive, she said.”

He looked down at his hands in his lap. “I wasn’t good enough for either one of them, but I got my hopes up that maybe it would work, maybe they could love me and I could love them and we could be happy, but it didn’t work out that way. Now, I kind of have feelings for Marinette, and you’re telling me she likes me back, and that’s really cruel, Alya, even if you don’t mean for it to be because what if I get my hopes up only to be not good enough again? That doesn’t feel good, so…I think you need to tone it down before I get hurt.”

“Oh, Adrien,” Alya sighed heartbrokenly, turning to pull him into a crushing hug. “I’m sorry. You _are_ good enough. Things with your mystery girl and Kagami not working out weren’t really about you. In relationships, it’s never just about one person,” she informed gently.

“It…isn’t?” he whispered, baffled, into her shoulder.

“No,” she stressed. “It’s about who you two are _together_. Kagami broke up with you because she wasn’t able to give you what you needed back then, and she wasn’t getting what she needed from you either. It was a mutual you two not being a good fit, even though she was the one to break it off. If she really thought you weren’t good enough, would she have worked to rebuild your friendship afterwards? Obviously, she saw something in you that she wanted in her life. I don’t know Kagami well, but she doesn’t strike me as the kind of woman who would spend her valuable time on something or someone she didn’t consider important.”

“Oh,” Adrien breathed, suddenly seeing the situation in a whole different light. “But…with…with ‘Lay’…I don’t think there’s anything wrong with her. I think it’s just that I’m not what she wants, so…it feels a little different than the situation with Kagami.”

Alya hugged Adrien tighter as she snorted, “Honestly, Lay seems to be the problem here, if you asked me. You’re wonderful Adrien, and it’s on her that she doesn’t have enough sense to scoop you up before someone else does. She’s the one holding onto a fruitless crush when she could easily have an amazing relationship with you. Yes, you’re not what she wants right now, but that’s because there’s something up with her, not because there’s something wrong with you.”

Adrien wrapped his arms around Alya and squeezed her like she was a life raft.

“Thank you,” he whispered into her hair.

“Any time,” she assured. “Seriously. I mean that.”

“Thanks,” he repeated, his voice catching on all the swirling emotions he was experiencing.

“You’re very welcome. …Thanks for sharing all that with me.” She gave his back a comforting pat and then slowly pulled back to look him in the face. “For what it’s worth, I honestly don’t think you’re getting your hopes up for nothing with Marinette.”

He frowned, swiping at tears as he rolled her words around in his mind, unsure of what to think. “I don’t know, Alya.”

“No worries.” She shrugged nonchalantly. “I’ll just have to pester Marinette about asking _you_ out on a date.”

And she would too. She was going to force Marinette to get her freaking act together already and shower this poor, sweet child with the love and affirmation he clearly needed. It didn’t matter that Marinette was a mess. Alya was going to kick her butt into shape and make sure she did every single one of the cheesy clichés from the classic rom coms to woo Adrien because Adrien deserved to be given flowers and chocolate and sweet notes. He deserved long walks on beaches and carriage rides through the park and gondolas and horseback rides at sunset and…everything. Just _everything_.

Alya was going to make sure that Marinette courted the hell out of Adrien until the boy didn’t know what hit him but sure as hell knew that he was loved and ten thousand percent good enough.

Adrien’s eyes widened in horror. “You _can’t_ tell Marinette about my crush on her!” he pleaded. “It’ll ruin our friendship, Alya!”

She waved away his concerns, patting him on the arm and coaxing, “Relax. I won’t tell her all the sappy stuff you said about her being wonderful and gorgeous and all that. Your secret is safe.”

He exhaled deeply in relief, sinking back into the couch cushions. “Thank you.”

“No worries,” she assured, retrieving the popcorn bowl and throwing a piece at him (it missed). “I’m just going to hound her until she does a thorough job of sweeping you off of your feet.”

“Unfortunately, I’m kind of easy,” he snorted, only half joking as he leaned in to grab another handful of popcorn. He tossed a piece at her, and it went straight down the front of her shirt. “Two points.”

“Brat,” Alya hissed, fishing the popcorn out of her bra.

“You love me,” he snickered, grabbing the remote off the coffee table.

“You bet your designer underwear I do,” she retorted threateningly. “Start the movie already.”

“On it,” Adrien happily replied.

It wasn’t until after the movie when they were cleaning up that Alya remembered her mission.

While she was confident in her new plan to get Adrienette off the ground by forcing Marinette to sweep Adrien off his feet and forget all about this toxic ‘Lay’ girl, Alya couldn’t help but think that there must be some reason why Tikki had told her to discover the identity of Adrien’s crush. She’d be remiss if she gave up so easily.

“So…” Alya broached the topic cautiously. “Sorry to bring up a sore subject, but…does this mystery girl of yours have a name?”

“I’m sure she does,” Adrien snorted bitterly.

Alya frowned, wondering where the vitriol was coming from. “Could you maybe tell me what her name is?” she tried again.

“No,” he sighed dejectedly, rinsing the popcorn bowl and loading it into the dishwasher.

Alya pursed her lips as she calculated. “Come on,” she urged playfully, trying to keep the mood light. “Why not?”

“It’s a secret,” he responded, dodging the question and firing one of his own back at her. “Why do you want to know?”

Alya took a slow inhale as she stowed the rest of the baby carrots and sugar snap peas they hadn’t eaten back into their respective containers.

“Because,” she replied levelly, “I’m your friend, and I’m concerned. Like, is this girl someone I know? Am I friends with her and think she’s the greatest thing ever but she’s secretly evil and hurting my best friends behind my back? It’s not out of the realm of possibility, so I’d like to be sure. I’d like to know if I’m being tricked or manipulated.”

Adrien winced at the reminder that Alya had been a victim too.

“It’s not like back then,” he quickly assured. “Lay’s a good person. It’s not her fault that I’ve allowed her actions to hurt me all this time…and I don’t think you know her.”

“Okay, so what’s the harm in telling me her name?” she prodded. “I’m worried about you, and I’d like to be on the lookout for this girl. How am I supposed to watch your back and set you up with Marinette if I don’t know what I’m fighting against?”

“Look, I really appreciate your concern and you wanting to support me, Alya, but could we just drop this, please?” he entreated, reaching for the hummus dish.

“No,” Alya huffed. “I am on a mission from God to find out who this girl is, and I swear to you I will fulfill my quest.”

Adrien paused mid-reach, blinking curiously at his friend, wondering if this were one of her hyperboles. “You’re on a mission from _God_?”

Alya frowned down at the plastic vegetable containers. “Well… _a_ god, at least. At least, I think so. I don’t know. Some minor deity.”

Adrien pursed his lips, muttering, “What are you? [Jeanne d’Arc](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joan_of_Arc)?”

She shook her head. “Anyway. I’m on a mission, and I will not fail, Agreste.”

“It’s a secret,” he mumbled, grabbing the hummus dish and turning on the faucet to rinse it. “I don’t want to tell you.”

“Please?” Alya resorted to begging. “Why not? We’re bros, aren’t we? I know we’re not as close as you and Nino, but—”

“—Because you’re going to judge me,” Adrien confessed, cheeks glowing in shame.

Alya shoved the vegetable containers into the fridge haphazardly and came over to lean up against the kitchen counter next to Adrien, her back to it so that she faced him. “Cupcake, I am one hundred percent on your side in this. I might not get what you see in this girl, but I’m not going to judge you for having feelings for her. I know love works in mysterious ways sometimes, and you can’t help who you fall for. Heck, I never would have pictured myself with Nino, but, now, here I am pretty sure that that goofball is going to wear me down and convince me to marry him one of these days. I’m _not_ going to judge you.”

Adrien looked away, shaking his head. “You don’t get it. It’s not like that. It’s…”

“Try me,” Alya pressed, no longer caring so much about the mission Tikki had given her. She wanted Adrien to feel like he could trust her. He had so few support systems in his life, and she wanted to be one of them. She wanted him to feel safe with her, to feel less alone and misunderstood.

“Tell me, and explain what it _is_ like,” she prompted gently.

His teeth sank into his bottom lip as he watched the water rain from the faucet, washing away the detritus of their movie night snacks.

“…All right,” he finally replied in a soft, resigned voice, like he knew he was making a mistake before he even opened his mouth.

Alya was determined to prove him wrong.

He took a deep breath and looked up at her. “It’s Ladybug. The girl I’m in love with is Ladybug.”

Alya blinked. Her jaw dropped, and she stared at Adrien, not really in control of the abject confusion displayed upon her visage.

“See!” he accused, taking her reaction badly. “You’re judging me. You’re thinking, ‘This idiot has wasted seven years pining after a celebrity crush’, but you’re wrong. It’s not like that,” he growled defensively.

Alya’s eyes narrowed, and her brow furrowed as she tried to piece together how Ladybug—Marinette—could be the same girl Adrien had described to her before the movie and at the coffee shop.

It didn’t make any sense.

“I actually know her,” Adrien continued, the hair on his arms and the back of his neck standing straight up. “We’re friends. I see her all the time, and we’re actually pretty close. It’s not some dumb celebrity crush. I know what it’s like when people project their feelings onto their idealized image of me, and I would never do that to her. Yeah, maybe I idolize her a little, but my feelings for her are _real_ ,” he bit savagely.

Alya put her hands up in surrender as she finally found the words to reply. “Whoa. Settle down, Sunshine. I never said your feelings weren’t real. _You’re_ the one putting those words in my mouth. I was just kind of shocked, honestly. I mean, I thought you might have a crush on one of your model coworkers, but…wow. Ladybug.”

Adrien deflated, retracting his claws. “Oh….. Uh…sorry.”

She waved his apology away. “So, wait. You and Ladybug are friends?”

Adrien blanched, hand going to the back of his neck to rub nervously as he realized how rash he had been in his indignant tirade. He winced. “Please don’t post anything about this on the Ladyblog. The last thing I need is Papillon targeting me because he thinks he can get to Ladybug through me.”

“Why does everyone think my first instinct is to publish sensitive information on my blog?” Alya grumbled, a bit put out at her friends’ lack of faith in her.

Adrien shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean…there was that time back in collège when you posted that interview with Ladybug’s supposed best friend on your blog, so…”

Alya gave him a nasty glare. “I was _fourteen_. Fourteen-year-olds are allowed to be stupid and gullible.”

He put his hands up, looking like he was concerned she might deck him. “True. Very true. Sorry. It’s just really important you don’t tell anyone.”

“Duh,” she snorted. “Don’t worry, Cupcake. I won’t be throwing you to the wolves. So. Back to the important bits: You’re friends with Ladybug? Like, you two have conversations with actual words and discuss things and hang out and all that?”

He nodded, looking a little puzzled at the fact that she was giving him the third degree.

“No offence, but are you sure she’s the real Ladybug and not someone wearing a Ladybug costume?” Alya needed to be sure because things were just not adding up.

She could tell that Adrien was completely serious. He really was in love with Ladybug, but Alya couldn’t imagine Marinette making progress with her crush as her masked alter ego and just failing to mention it to Alya.

Adrien arched an eyebrow at her, clearly not impressed with her powers of deduction. “I’ve seen her use the magic yoyo. I’m pretty sure the girl I’m in love with is the real Ladybug.”

Alya nodded, brain still flying in a dozen directions. “Okay. And you said the other day that you’d told Ladybug how you felt about her, right? Like, you specifically told her ‘I love you’, and she didn’t think you were joking or anything, right?”

Adrien winced, remembering the night several months into their partnership when Ladybug had apologized to him about not having realized that he was serious in his vows of undying love.

“She didn’t realize I was being sincere at first, but we got that part straightened out several years ago. She knows I’m head over heels in love with her,” he confirmed.

Alya bit her lip, thoughts spinning.

There was no way that Marinette knew Adrien was in love with her.

Alya knew she was missing something, but she couldn’t figure out for the life of her what that something was. More investigation would be necessary, but she didn’t think the information she needed could be gained from Adrien.

“Well,” Alya remarked decidedly. “Ladybug is a complete and total idiot. Her loss, honestly.”

Adrien’s expression softened, and he went back to rinsing dishes, reaching next for the bowl the roasted chickpeas had been in. “Thanks, Alya. I know you’ve admired her for a long time, so…it’s really good to have you on my side in all this.”

“Sure thing,” Alya replied distractedly, giving his shoulder a comforting pat. “I’m going to support the hell out of you. You better believe it.”

Something wasn’t right, and it was infuriating.

Alya was going to figure this out, and no one could stop her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's Chapter Four. What did you think? ^.^ Was there a specific part you liked? I'm continuing to enjoy Alya and Adrien's relationship. I think I liked them throwing popcorn at one another best.
> 
> A note on translation: Mec is French slang for mate/guy/bro/dude. Like, as in, “That mec stole my parking space!” or “Hey, Mec. What’s up?” When I write Nino, I don't use "dude" instead of "mec" most of the time because constant use of "dude" sounds really California surfer/stoner to me, and that's not Nino's character in the show at all. At least, not in the original French version.
> 
> I finished writing Chapter Seven last night. ^.^; It was kind of brutal, but I think I've gotten it into acceptable shape now. I don't write romantic Ladrien scenes, so writing Ladybug asking Adrien on a date was kind of challenging because I was struggling to get a handle on their dynamic. There was one more scene that I was going to include in Chapter Seven, but the chapter was already pretty long, so I decided to take the scene and put it in a new chapter along with the scene I was going to have at the beginning of what I had planned as Chapter Eight. Now Chapter Nine will just be the Ladrien date and the conclusion of the story.
> 
> Thank you for reading, everyone. I hope you have a lovely weekend, and I will see you again on Tuesday, 12/01/2020. Take care! ^.^
> 
> References:  
> Jeanne d’Arc: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joan_of_Arc


	5. Horrifying Realization

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alya puts the pieces together and sets to work dismantling the Love Square after she gets done screaming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, Lovelies! Please continue to ignoring the slowly increasing chapter count. ^.^ Seriously, I think ten is my final answer. I'm working on the chapter now. I just have to write the Ladrien date and wrap things up.
> 
> Anyway. Thank you very much for coming back for more. I'm really excited that so many people are enjoying the story. Thank you all for your bookmarks, kudos, and comments. I appreciate your continued support. ^o^
> 
> I hope you enjoy today's chapter. I think it's the one you've all been waiting for.

Marinette looked up from her sewing machine and noted that Alya was still glaring at a mostly blank page on her laptop screen, her cursor blinking tauntingly much where it had been fifteen minutes ago when Marinette had last checked on her brooding companion.

“Everything okay?” she tentatively called to her best friend. “You don’t look like you’re making much progress on that article.”

Alya growled softly, sinking back into the cushion of Marinette’s chaise longue and gripping her hair with both hands at the roots. “Ugh. I just can’t focus right now.”

Marinette spun around in her chair to face Alya and give her her undivided attention. She arched an eyebrow concernedly as she inquired, “Anything in particular on your mind? You seem kind of irritated. If you need to vent, I’m all ears.”

Alya blew out a sigh and sat back up, gently closing her laptop and setting it aside. “I’m just…baffled, and, you know me, I can’t _stand_ a mystery that resists solving.”

Marinette cocked her head to the side, intrigued. “What kind of mystery are you trying to crack?”

Alya bit her lip, hesitating, not wanting to tip her hand. She shook her head and waved dismissively in an attempt to minimize the significance of the problem to Marinette. “Oh, it’s just something I’m investigating. It’s driving me nuts because…has Adrien made you watch Kurosawa’s [Rashomon](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashomon)?”

Marinette pursed her lips and wrinkled her brow as she silently repeated the film’s title to herself, trying to summon up some recollection. “Maybe? Sorry. Which one is that again? He always refers to them by their original Japanese titles, so sometimes they kind of blur together in my head.”

Alya smiled affectionately, explaining, “It’s the one where the characters all give their accounts of the same events, but their stories are all different and contradict one another.”

Marinette’s eyes widened. “Oooooh. Yeah. Is that the one where the guy takes home the abandoned baby at the end?”

The smile melted off of Alya’s face, turning down into a frown. “ _That’s_ the part you remember?”

Marinette shrugged simply. “That’s the most important part of the film, isn’t it? After watching the ugly sides of humanity portrayed in the rest of the film, the guy taking the baby home is something that inspires hope for the future. I really liked that.”

“Huh,” Alya replied thoughtfully, seeing Marinette’s point. “I mean, yeah,” she chuckled. “I guess you’re right.”

Marinette nodded, a self-satisfied grin just peeking out of the side of her mouth. “Of course I’m right. Adrien really likes that part too.”

“Nino likes the cinematography,” Alya snickered. “After Adrien showed it to him, he went on and on and _on_ about the camera angles for three solid weeks.”

“Typical Nino,” Marinette laughed fondly. “So…what does the movie have to do with your investigation?”

Alya sighed as the frustration came rushing back. “The people I’ve interviewed’s stories aren’t lining up. They can’t possibly both be telling the truth, and yet, I don’t think either of them is lying to me. At least, _they_ don’t seem to think that they’re lying, so…I just don’t know what to think, Marinette, and it’s making me want to scream. I’m _going_ to figure this out,” she asserted, fire behind the declaration. “I am fueled by sheer annoyance!”

Marinette nodded encouragingly. “You’ll get it eventually. I’ve never known anything to be able to stop you once you set your mind to something, so I’m not holding out hope that this mystery will stand a chance against you for long.”

“You better believe it,” Alya snorted and then took a deep, cleansing breath so that she could appear to switch topics. “…So…”

Marinette’s head tipped to the right. “…Soooo?”

“Bear with me,” Alya requested, “but I just had movie night with Adrien, and we were talking about some things.”

Marinette shifted uncomfortably, eyeing her friend warily. “What is it?”

“I was just wondering…have you interacted much with Adrien as Ladybug?” Alya put it out there and then held her breath, eager for the results that would crack her case wide open.

Marinette blinked in surprise and then seemed to consider, searching her memories.

Alya frowned slightly.

Adrien had said that he and Ladybug interacted regularly, that they often had conversations and hung out, that they were close. If that were true, it wouldn’t be taking Marinette this long to come up with an answer…unless she was hiding something from Alya. But why would she do that now that her identity as Ladybug was no longer a secret?

“No,” Marinette finally answered. “Not really. I mean, no more so than any other Parisian who gets caught up in the akuma attacks as much as he does.”

“So…you two haven’t, like, had any lifechanging heart-to-heart talks?” Alya verified.

Marinette gave her a strange look. “Nope. When I’m transformed, I have a job to do. We’ve made chitchat while I’ve carried him to safety from time to time, but I don’t recall anything revolutionary or earthshattering ever being discussed. I think I would know if I’d reached that kind of romantic checkpoint with my crush.”

“Well, you have as Marinette,” Alya reminded encouragingly.

Marinette deflated, head dropping to her chest as she moaned, “Yeah, after a year of acting like a complete idiot in front of him.”

Alya rolled her eyes. “He thinks you’re adorable.”

Marinette scoffed, just as Alya had anticipated she would, and looked up. “Why are you asking about Ladybug and Adrien, Alya?”

Alya shrugged, playing it off casually as she switched the cross of her legs. “So, you don’t ever use your superpowers to go visit civilians and befriend them?”

Marinette gaped at Alya as if she suspected that her friend might be going insane. “No? How irresponsible would that be? If Papillon ever found out that Ladybug visited civilians, he would target them. I would never take that risk,” she stressed.

Alya quirked an eyebrow. “And yet, didn’t you tell me the other day that Chat Noir has been coming to visit Marinette for _years_ now?”

Marinette averted her eyes, a soft blush flooding her cheeks. “That’s _different_.”

“How so?” Alya chortled. “Because you like it when the guy you love comes to woo your civilian self?”

“Because he’s lonely,” Marinette answered defensively. “I can go out as Marinette pretty much whenever I want and interact with whomever I want, but it’s not like that for Chat Noir.”

Alya’s grin faltered. “It’s not?”

Marinette shook her head vehemently. “Don’t breathe a word of what I’m about to say to anyone, but he has a really restrictive homelife.”

Alya’s eyes widened in surprise, and she leaned forward. “He does?”

Marinette sighed ruefully, “His mother died a while ago, and his father has been a really controlling jerk since then. He reminds me of Adrien’s father, actually, so imagine Gabriel Agreste, but, like, three times worse.”

Alya winced in sympathy. She knew how bad Gabriel Agreste could be to Adrien. She didn’t want to imagine worse neglect and abuse than that.

“So you see why it’s a different matter entirely for Chat Noir to use his Miraculous to get out of the house and go interact with other humans,” Marinette summarized, with a decisive nod.

Alya’s lips rounded into a pensive “O” as she took stock of this information. “Yeah. Yeah, that makes sense…. So…Ladybug doesn’t have any civilian friends?”

Marinette pursed her lips. “Civilian acquaintances, yes. Chat Noir and I get ice cream sometimes with Monsieur Ramier after he gets akumatized, but I wouldn’t consider us ‘friends’. Just friendly acquaintances.”

Alya nodded, trying to assimilate the additional facts she had gained.

So far, Adrien’s story was falling through, but Alya couldn’t bring herself to throw doubt on him yet. He’d been far too adamant about being close to Ladybug, about it not being a celebrity crush because he’d been on the receiving end of that much of his life and knew how horrible it could be.

Alya couldn’t make herself believe that Adrien was just delusional. There had to be something there.

“So…keep humoring me, but has Adrien ever told you he loves you?” Alya moved on, digging deeper.

Marinette gave her a bland, unimpressed look. “You mean other than in my dreams? No, Alya. What the heck is up with all the bizarre questions?”

“The why isn’t important,” Alya insisted with authority. “Just roll with it. I’m coming up with new tactics to get you and Adrien together.”

Marinette’s eyebrows slowly came together into a “V” of confusion. “But I decided to give up on Adrien.”

“Yeah, but if you change your mind, I’ve got it covered,” Alya explained, not convincing Marinette. “So Adrien’s never confessed his love for you?”

Marinette gave a longsuffering sigh. “Only to tell me what a great _friend_ I am and how much he treasures my _friendship_.”

“Be nice,” Alya chided. “Friendship is a heck of a big deal to him. All he had was Chloé for thirteen years.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Marinette grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest. “It just stings to get passively rejected like that over and over.”

“I know, Girl,” Alya cooed sympathetically. “I’m sorry. I know it’s not what you want, but try to take solace in how important being his friend makes you to him.”

“I know.” Marinette clicked her tongue in frustration. “I’m just sick of trying to make the best of things and looking on the bright side and taking the high road.”

“I get it,” Alya assured, “but I think we can still get you where you want to be.”

Marinette gave her a skeptical look. “Oh, yeah? How…if we overlook for a minute that I’m giving up on Adrien?”

“Has _anyone_ ever confessed their love for you as Ladybug?” Alya tried a different route, trying to root out the truth.

Marinette sank petulantly in her desk chair. “Yeah, like, everyone and their dog. Ladybug is pretty universally loved.”

“No, like, seriously,” Alya clarified. “For real. Not just some crazy fan. Is there someone who actually loves Ladybug?”

Marinette almost replied automatically but then paused and considered. “I mean…if you’re asking about a civilian who loves Ladybug, then, no…but…there’s Chat Noir. I know that’s probably not what you mean, but…”

The gears in Alya’s mind caught on a snag and abruptly stopped, unable to keep turning as she came to an alarming solution that she wished she could dismiss out of hand.

She gulped, took a deep breath, and carefully inquired, “In the beginning, did you think Chat Noir was just joking when he told you he loved you?”

Marinette groaned, hiding her face in her hands. “ _Yeees_. I know I’m the worst, but he was so over-the-top that I couldn’t take him seriously. It wasn’t until Glaciator when Chat Noir showed up on my balcony feeling all heartbroken over Ladybug that I realized that he was actually for real, and I felt _awful_ , Alya.”

“But then you two talked and got things straightened out,” Alya added breathlessly, in a state of shock as she recalled what Adrien had told her.

“Yeah,” Marinette sighed, dropping her hands to her lap. “I still felt really bad for not returning his feelings, though, but I explained about how my heart was with someone else because I was pursuing Adrien at that point, so…”

Suddenly, things made too much sense, and Alya wished that they would stop because the solution she’d come to was just too ridiculous.

If Ladybug had been turning down Chat Noir because Marinette was in love with Adrien who was in love with Ladybug who was Marinette who loved Adrien who was Chat Noir…Alya was going to scream and pull her hair out and eat Nino’s hat or something.

Marinette jumped as Alya let out an involuntary curse. “W-What? What happened? What’s wrong?”

Alya cursed again, louder and more indignantly.

“Alya, what?” Marinette demanded. “You’re freaking me out.”

“Give me a minute,” Alya groaned, picking up the pillow on Marinette’s chaise and pressing it to her face, yelling into it.

Marinette sat staring at her best friend, utterly perplexed and not a small bit concerned.

Alya lowered the pillow about half a minute later, took a deep breath, and explained, “My life is dumb. Everything is so stupid and dumb, and my life’s work has no meaning because secret identities are infuriating.”

Marinette blinked uncomprehendingly. “Alya…are you okay?”

“No,” Alya replied calmly. “But you know what?”

“What?” Marinette played along, hoping that things would start making sense soon.

“It’s going to be okay,” Alya assured, fueled by a new sense of determination. “I’m going to fix everything, and it’s going to be fine.”

“Oh. That’s good,” Marinette replied, not so sure.

“New plan,” Alya announced, clapping her hands as she got to her feet and went over to Marinette, gently pulling the other girl up to standing and placing her hands on a very confused Marinette’s shoulders. “Step one. We need to make things right between you and Chat Noir.”

Marinette’s brow scrunched up, eyes narrowing. “Between Marinette and Chat Noir or Ladybug and Chat Noir? Because everything’s fine between us, Alya. Our partnership is great. Our friendship is great. Everything’s great. No fixing necessary.”

“Wrong,” Alya countered, pinning Marinette to the spot with an intense gaze.

Marinette saw the drive in Alya’s eyes and knew better than to argue.

“Girl, I know you told Chat Noir that there was someone else and that nothing was going to happen between you two, but your words and your actions aren’t lining up.”

Marinette’s frown deepened, shifting from confusion to apprehension. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, you’ve unintentionally been leading the poor boy on for _years_ now,” Alya explained patiently yet decidedly. “You’re really bad at hiding your feelings, Marinette. The only reason Adrien doesn’t know is because his father kept him locked up the first thirteen years of his life, so he has zero understanding of social cues. You may have told Chat Noir that nothing was going to happen, but your actions have been hinting at the fact that you have feelings for him, so he’s been stuck in this loop of you telling him no with your words but then turning around and telling him maybe with your actions.”

Marinette’s face blanched in horror as she thought of her behavior around Chat Noir. Part of her wanted to tell Alya that she was off base, but a larger part knew that what Alya was saying rang true.

She _had_ told Chat Noir in no uncertain terms that there was someone else and that they could only be partners and friends, but…there was the platonic flirting, just to start with. It had only been platonic for a short while. After Marinette had started to reciprocate Chat’s feelings, the flirting had ceased to be in jest. She hadn’t told Chat that she was serious, but…maybe there was a part of him that could tell.

And then there was the way she was so handsy with him. It was true that friends could be physically affectionate without there having to be romantic feelings, but…the hugs and the snuggling on rooftops and the casual touches…it had meant something to her, and she knew it had meant something to him. The only thing was that he hadn’t _known_ what she was feeling, but…what if Alya was right and he had picked up on her romantic interest in him?

What if she’d unknowingly been giving him false hope all this time? It had never been her intention to lead him on. She wanted him to find someone to love him, find someone who made him happy. What if he’d pushed pause on all of that while waiting for her?

She felt sick, thinking that she’d been keeping him waiting, keeping him trapped because she knew he would wait forever for her if she gave him the slightest sliver of hope.

It was Marinette’s turn to curse loudly.

“Yeah,” Alya sighed in agreement.

“Alya, what do I do?!” Marinette demanded, gripping her friend by the arms, beginning to freak out.

“Deep breath,” Alya coached, inhaling and exhaling slowly so that Marinette could follow along.

They repeated the process several times until Marinette had markedly calmed down.

“Okay. Now what?” Marinette urged. “How do I fix this?”

“Call him,” Alya instructed. “Right now. Transform and call him and ask him to meet, and then come clean. Tell him what you told me the other day about how you love him, but it can’t happen because of your duty to Paris and the Guardian thing and the other guy you’re in love with and all that. Be honest with him and tell him you want him to give other people in his life a chance because you want him to be happy. Encourage him to move on. Give him the closure he needs, so he’ll know once and for all that nothing is happening between you two.”

Marinette blinked owlishly. “You want me to call him right now?”

Alya nodded. “Did I stutter? ‘Right now’ means right now, so hop to it. Put your spots on, call your cat-boy, and get this sorted out.”

“Like…right _now_?” Marinette gulped.

Alya stepped back, crossing her arms in disapproval as she gave Marinette a look that clearly begged the question, “Seriously?”

“I’m just…not prepared,” Marinette tried to finagle. “Usually, before I try to confess my feelings to Adrien, I come up with a plan and a script, so I’m prepared. Tikki and I practice roleplaying, and I memorize my lines, and—”

“—And that never works,” Alya cut in, not taking no for an answer.

Adrien had waited long enough. It was time Ladybug let him off the hook so that he could move on and be happy with Marinette.

Marinette’s shoulders rose up to meet her ears as she grumbled, “You never know. It might one of these days.”

“Tikki,” Alya called out for backup, “could you please tell her to get her butt in gear already? She’s stalling.”

“Tikki,” Marinette whined, “Alya’s being brutally honest, and I don’t like it.”

The kwami gave a soft, affectionate sigh as she flew down from her perch and nuzzled Marinette’s cheek. “I know you don’t think you’re ready, Marinette, but, if you wait until you do feel ready, you may never tell him how you feel at all. Maybe extemporaneous speaking would be good for you,” she encouraged, ever the optimist and cheerleader.

Marinette looked almost persuaded, but a hint of doubt remained, pinched between her eyebrows.

“After all,” Tikki continued, “do you really want to keep Chat Noir dangling in the dark for any longer than you already have? It _has_ been six years since you realized you had feelings for him, Marinette. I think it would be best to tell him sooner rather than later.”

“Oh, all right,” Marinette sighed, sinking back down into her desk chair. “You two win. I’ll call him and figure out what to tell him on the fly. Tikki, transform me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Alya. Her brain is about ready to explode. I think she handled that rather well, though, wouldn't you agree?
> 
> Next up is Lady Noir. I hope you'll look forward to it.
> 
> Thanks for reading, everyone! I'll see you again on Friday, 12/04/2020.
> 
> References:  
> Rashomon: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashomon


	6. The Confession

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ladybug and Chat Noir sit down to have an honest conversation while romantically holding hands on a rooftop, admiring the view.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! Happy Friday. ^.^ No one asked for this, but here's some Lady Noir.
> 
> By the way, Chapters Four, Five, and Six all happen on the same day, so Alya and Adrien had their movie "night" a few hours prior to this.
> 
> Enjoy!

“Your girlfriend is trying to call you,” Plagg noted lazily from his comfy nest in Adrien’s sock drawer.

Adrien stopped in the middle of practicing [Chopin’s Ballade No. 2 in F major](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZfNAVQ6H4o&feature=youtu.be&t=300) to look up curiously at his kwami. “Marinette is?”

Plagg had been teasing Adrien about Marinette supposedly being his girlfriend almost as long as they’d known her, and Adrien had long ago given up on getting Plagg to stop.

“No,” Plagg replied disinterestedly. “The other one.”

Adrien blinked, momentarily confused. At first, he thought Plagg was being sarcastic. It took his brain a second to process that Plagg really did mean _the other one_.

“Wait. What? Ladybug?!” Adrien rose from the piano bench hastily, nearly tipping it over backwards. “Why didn’t you say something?”

“I’m saying something right now,” Plagg yawned, giving a decidedly feline stretch, arching his spine before settling back into the sock pile.

“Sooner,” Adrien groaned. “Plagg, transform me.”

The call had already gone to voicemail by the time Adrien’s transformation sequence ended, but he wasted no time in calling her back.

“Sorry. Plagg didn’t tell me you were calling right away,” he spit out in a rush. “What’s wrong, My Lady? Akuma?”

“Oh,” Ladybug’s voice came out startled and uncertain. “Sorry. No. Nothing’s wrong.”

Chat Noir frowned, picking up on her unease and nervousness. “Are you sure? You sound a little flustered, Buguinette.”

“What?” she laughed awkwardly, her tone sounding forced. “No. I’m not flustered. I just…”

Chat could swear he heard someone in the background whisper, “Deep breath. It’s just Chat Noir. You’ve got this.”

“Ladybug, is someone there with you?” His thoughts swung rapidly between “kidnapper” and “another man”.

“Sorry,” Ladybug sighed and then made herself inhale slowly. “It’s just my friend. Look. I’m really sorry to bother you, Chat Noir, but are you busy? Would you be able to meet up and talk for, like, twenty minutes?”

Chat looked back to his piano and smiled bitterly, knowing no one would be in to check on him until it was time for breakfast at the very earliest.

“No worries, My Lady,” he assured, injecting a warmth into his voice that dispelled the chill of his empty room. “I can meet up. Just say where.”

Ladybug bit her lip, considering for a moment before tentatively inquiring, “Do you remember a long time ago that night you planned that romantic rooftop picnic surprise for me?”

Taken aback that she even remembered, he didn’t reply right away. When he did, his voice was soft and a little unsteady. “Sure. Yeah. I—uh—yeah. I remember. I’m surprised that _you_ do, honestly.”

She pursed her lips and looked down at her spotted feet. “I’ve never forgotten that night,” she replied sadly. “See you there in a bit?”

“Yeah,” he promised. “See you there.”

When he arrived ten minutes later, she was pacing the rooftop in question, talking to herself and gesticulating wildly with her arms.

“Practicing a speech?” he chuckled fondly as he soundlessly touched down on the railing.

Ladybug jumped, squeaked, and would have fallen over backwards if she hadn’t pinwheeled her arms to somehow regain her balance.

“Ack!” she squawked, eyes round like marbles.

He couldn’t help an affectionate laugh at her expense as he shook his head at her antics.

She cleared her throat and attempted to reclaim some semblance of an air of dignity. “Sorry. Yes. I was practicing a speech…in a way.”

Chat nodded, easily accepting her vague response. “I’m sure you’ll do great when you give it. So. What’s up? What was it you needed to talk to me about?”

Ladybug took what was probably her tenth deep breath of the evening.

“I’m in love with you!” came out with the exhale, shrill and squeaky and not at all how she had intended to broach the subject.

Chat’s luminescent eyes went wide in shock for a moment before settling into abject confusion.

Meanwhile, Ladybug clapped both hands over her mouth, emitted a high-pitched noise, and stared at him in terror.

“Sorry,” he replied carefully. “What did you say?”

That seemed to break the spell, causing Ladybug to groan and look away.

“I am so sorry,” she quickly apologized to the roof shingles. “That is _not_ what I meant to say. Ignore me. I’m sorry. I’m such a mess.”

“It’s okay,” he granted magnanimously, trying to contain the confusion and pain and elation bubbling up inside of him. “Just…start over. Please.”

She sighed gravely. “I was talking to a friend of mine, and she made me realize I’d screwed up, Chat Noir. I’d really, really screwed up.”

“Mistakes can be fixed,” he comforted, lowering himself off of the railing and onto the roof proper. “Tell me about it. Maybe we can figure this out together.”

She held out her hand to him, and he crossed the roof, readily taking it and giving it a squeeze.

She tugged him down to sit on the roof with her and shot a brave smile his way.

He returned it patiently, revealing no external sign of the maelstrom of emotions he was feeling inside.

“Chat Noir, you know you’re one of the most important people in my life, don’t you?” she started softly, searching his face.

His emerald eyes widened slightly, but he didn’t look unduly surprised.

“I knew I was pretty important to you,” he confessed. “I mean, you’ve told me before how much our friendship means to you and that I’m irreplaceable, so I knew I was important, but I was never vain enough to think I could score a top spot.”

She gave a little snort. “Please. You’re easily top five.”

“You do me a great honor, My Lady,” he chuckled, giving her hand another squeeze. “I’m happy to say that you made my top five too.”

It became easier for her to smile at that. “Thanks, Chaton. So…you know I care about you deeply and that I’d never hurt you on purpose.” There was a hint of a question in her voice as she glanced up at him for confirmation.

“Of course,” he affirmed.

She took a breath and blew it out, her brow crinkling in disquietude as she looked down at their joined hands. “I was talking to a friend tonight, and she brought it to my attention that even though I’ve been telling you for years that I could only be friends and partners with you, I may have been unintentionally leading you on with my actions.” She looked up at him again. “Chat Noir, have I ever done or said something that made you think that I had changed my mind about just being friends?”

This time, he looked away, forehead furrowing, cat ears flattening. “I…No…. I…”

“Please be honest with me,” she begged. “I kind of need to know if I’ve done something to give you the wrong idea. I _never_ meant to play with your feelings like that.”

“I know,” he sighed softly, training his eyes on the little row of chimneys not far off in the middle distance. “I know you didn’t mean it, but…yeah. Your friend was right,” he begrudgingly admitted. “It seems like every time I’m about ready to give up on you for real, you’ll do or say something that gives me just enough hope to make it another couple weeks, another few months, another year.”

She inhaled audibly, a sharp little gasp, and her grip on his hand tightened. “I am so, so sorry, Chat Noir,” she breathed, seemingly struggling to draw air into her lungs. “I didn’t mean—”

“—No,” he cut her off, turning to meet her gaze intently. “Ladybug, don’t. It’s not your fault. You explicitly told me about the other guy and how you only felt platonic love for me. _I’m_ the idiot who took the things you said and did the wrong way even after you were extremely clear about where we stood with each other. Don’t blame yourself, Buguinette. This is on me,” he assured, gently, smiling with warmth, affection, and clemency as he raised her hand to his lips. “Don’t worry about it. I always knew deep down that you didn’t have feelings for me. It was stupid to let myself think otherwise for even a second, but…you know me. Always thinking with my heart rather than my head.”

She couldn’t help the way heat rose up in her cheeks unbidden at his touch, staining her face red like a sunset.

Her heart flipped as his lips brushed the back of her hand. Even though the pressure was much too light to be felt through the suit, it tingled all the way up her arm.

She swallowed hard. “About that…”

He quirked an eyebrow, waiting patiently for her to go on.

She bit her lip, prefacing, “I don’t want to give you the wrong idea.”

His eyes narrowed slightly in puzzlement. “…But…?” he prompted.

She gulped again. “I don’t see a future for us as a couple with things the way they are, and you can’t change my mind about that, so don’t even try. There are so many reasons we can’t be together right now; plus, I’m still in love with the other guy, and I think I’m finally about to make some progress, so…”

His features became more and more perplexed as she went on and he struggled to follow where the conversation was going. “…So?” he urged her to continue.

“So we can only be friends while Papillon is at large and we have a job to do, secret identities to protect,” she summarized, gathering up her courage to reiterate what she had initially blurted out at the beginning of the conversation. “And I don’t want us putting our lives on hold until this is all over. It’s not fair, and it’s not healthy. We deserve happiness and love now.”

Chat nodded in agreement, remembering what Alya had told Adrien about letting go of his feelings for Ladybug and moving on so that he could live life to the fullest in the present.

“So, what are you saying?” he inquired curiously, still not sure what exactly they were talking about or why.

She looked at him with determination burning in her cornflower eyes. “I’m saying that I _do_ have feelings for you,” she revealed, voice gentle and warm.

He inhaled long and slow as his eerie green eyes went wide, stretching the edges of his mask along with them.

“I realized it about six years ago,” she explained wistfully. “You’re wonderful, Chat Noir. You’re one of the best, most amazing people I know. How could I not fall for you?” she laughed at herself.

His mouth opened and closed repeatedly, half-formed questions dying on his lips as new ones sprang forth and withered in rapid succession.

Ladybug shook her head sadly. “I love you, Chat Noir, and I’m afraid my feelings have been slipping through the cracks, even though I’ve tried so hard to keep them hidden. I’m afraid I’ve been giving you false hope because, even though I love you, Chat Noir, nothing can ever come of it.”

His brow furrowed with choler, and he opened his mouth once more to protest, but she gave him a pleading look and squeezed his hand.

“Not now. Not like this,” she entreated. “Not with secret identities in the way. Not while a romantic relationship could get in the way of our teamwork and affect our performance.”

He paled as the logic behind her words set in.

She smiled lachrymosely. “I’d like to think that we’d be perfect romantic partners and never fight or even have disagreements, but…I know that’s not realistic, and I’m afraid we wouldn’t be able to set personal matters aside in battle. I’m scared we’d let our romantic relationship distract us, and we’d be a split second too late in reacting. You _know_ how split seconds often make the difference between victory and getting blasted off the plain of existence. We _can’t_ risk it. Not while we’ve still got a job to do, people’s _lives_ depending on us.”

He dropped his head, his shoulders, ears, and tail drooping in defeat as he let out a weary sigh. “I wish I could say something to change your mind, but…deep down, I know you’re right, My Lady,” he grumbled in emotional exhaustion. “I already let my feelings distract me in battle enough as it is; I know being in a relationship with you wouldn’t do anything to help the problem.”

He looked up at her with baleful, watery eyes. “This just sucks so much because we would be _epic_ together.”

“Yeah,” she laughed through her own tears, giving his hand a squeeze in solidarity. “We really would be…. Maybe we will someday.”

His eyes widened, his breath catching as hope flowed back into him. “You mean…?”

“Maybe, when this is all over and I’m just me and you’re just you…maybe we’ll both be single, and maybe it will finally be time for us,” she replied, giving the thought form and sending it out into the universe.

“Yeah,” he whispered, praying that that day would come soon.

She took a deep breath and seemed to regain her composure. “Until then, though, we shouldn’t cheat ourselves out of the present moment.”

“What do you mean?” he asked as if pulled suddenly out of a dream.

“I mean, we should try to be happy, give other people a chance.” She shot him a teasing grin. “Like that girl you talk about sometimes? Your cute, compassionate friend?”

“Oh,” Chat chuckled, cheeks turning crimson around his mask. “Yeah. My one friend has really been pushing the idea of me asking her on a date. I guess my crush really isn’t all that subtle, is it?”

“Nope,” she snickered. “You’re obviously into her, and she sounds like a good person. If it can’t be me, I want you to be with someone who treats you right and makes you happy. She sounds sweet.”

“She is,” he affirmed with a smitten grin as he averted his eyes, thinking of Marinette’s laugh.

“Ask her on a date, then,” she urged, nudging his arm playfully with her own.

“Okay. But what about you and your mystery guy?” he pressed, reasoning that turnabout was fair play. “Are you finally going to tell him how you feel? I want you to be happy too, Buguinette.”

She bit her lip, mentally going over her recent decision to give up on Adrien…for what was probably the fortieth time.

“I don’t know,” she responded pensively, worrying at her bottom lip with her teeth. “I’m pretty sure he’ll tell me he just sees me as a friend, but…I’ve wasted so much time fretting and planning elaborate scenarios with which to confess my feelings…maybe I just need to go up to him and say, ‘Hey. I like you. Would you want to go on a date and see how it goes?’ It seems stupid to give up without ever telling him, and it seems pointless to waste any more time stressing, so…”

“So, walk up to him, tell him he’s hot, and ask him to go get coffee with you,” Chat coached. “No big deal.”

“No big deal, he says,” Ladybug snorted.

“It isn’t,” he stressed. “ _You’re_ the one making it into this seven-year-long soap opera of unrequited love and evil twins and aliens and all that garbage. Tell the guy you’re interested and move on if he says no.”

She arched an intrigued eyebrow at him. “Do you watch soap operas?”

Chat rolled his eyes, grumbling, “Plagg watches trashy TV, and I’ve picked up some things.”

She gave a snort of amusement. “Tikki likes rom coms.”

“Can we switch?” he begged, giving her the sad kitten eyes. “ _Please_?”

“Pft. Nope. My kwami is objectively better.” She stuck out her tongue playfully.

He contemplated crossing his arms and sulking, but that would necessitate letting go of her hand, and he was not keen on the idea.

“Mean,” he accused petulantly instead.

She giggled, and he shortly thereafter joined her, their combined laughter creating a lovely duet.

The moment eventually passed, leaving them smiling contentedly at one another, hands still joined, hearts feeling much lighter.

“…Is it horrible of me?” he tentatively broke the silence. “I want you to be happy and loved, of course. You _deserve_ that, but…I’m really hoping that we defeat Papillon in the next year or two and that you won’t be in a relationship at that point. I’m so selfish,” he scoffed at himself, averting his eyes in shame and starting to pull his hand away.

She squeezed it tighter as she leaned in and pressed a lingering kiss to his cheek. “It’s okay to be selfish sometimes,” she assured as she pulled back, smiling like a lighthouse beam in the fog.

He stared at her for a moment in wonder before a warm smile spread across his lips once more. “Thanks.”

“…Are we okay?” she asked, suddenly unsure. “I’m sorry to spring all this on you, but…when my friend told me earlier I had been leading you on, I felt sick, and she convinced me to put my cards on the table and clear up the misunderstanding. I would have lost my nerve if she hadn’t made me call you then and there.”

“No worries.” He waved away her concern with a genuine grin. “This was good. A _lot_ , but good. Necessary. It was good for me to get some closure and real hope instead of all of the uncertainty of the last few years.”

She winced, guilt hitting her all over again like that construction worker whose arms had been turned into wrecking balls when he’d been akumatized the previous summer. “I am so sorry I did that to you.”

“No worries,” he repeated, leaning in to give her temple a whisper of a kiss. “It’s all in the past…but mind telling me who this illustrious friend of yours is so that I can thank her personally? I feel like I need to get her a nice gift basket at least to express my eternal gratitude.”

“O-Oh.” Ladybug stiffened, her ears beginning to turn rosy. “Well…um…Alya Césaire.”

He blinked, completely taken aback that she had actually told him. He’d mostly been kidding, but… “Wait. Like…Alya from the Ladyblog?”

“I accidentally got a little drunk last week and crashed into her balcony on my way home, and she was really cool about it, so now we’re kind of friends,” Ladybug rushed to explain in a single breath.

Chat Noir continued to blink in surprise.

“I don’t know. Just, today, she kind of pounced on me out of nowhere about me leading you on, and she was adamant that I tell you the truth so that you could make peace with your feelings for me and move on. So…yeah,” she finished lamely with a helpless shrug.

“Oh,” he replied loquaciously.

“Yeah,” she repeated.

“Cool,” he added, sensing that his previous response had not been adequate.

He tried not to think about what the odds were that Alya would randomly, apropos of nothing, tell Ladybug to clear up the whole leading-Chat-Noir-on-situation shortly after Adrien had admitted to Alya that Ladybug had been leading _him_ on for years.

Mentally, Chat cursed in French, English, Chinese, Russian, Japanese, and Italian.

Italian didn’t go very well because he wasn’t completely clear on what exactly the words he knew meant, only that the person being sworn at in Italian had not done an adequate job according to Gabriel Agreste’s standards.

He figured that was close enough for his purposes at the moment.

“Alya’s cool,” he elaborated. “Very trustworthy.”

“Definitely,” Ladybug chuckled with a fond smile, and Chat calmed down somewhat, deciding to worry about possible secret identity exposure later.

Then and there, he was with the woman he loved, and she loved him in return. True, things weren’t perfect because they couldn’t be together just yet, but a new sense of hope and optimism that he hadn’t felt the equal of in years welled up within him, letting him enjoy the moment.

He gave her hand a squeeze and scooted in close to rest his head on top of hers as they sat there together, peacefully gazing up at the heavens.

Alya was just finishing up her article when a tentative tap came at her balcony door.

She frowned and grabbed her phone, thinking that she’d missed a text from Marinette.

She’d called as soon as she’d gotten home from talking to Chat Noir, and they’d spent nearly an hour picking through all of the details, returning again and again to the romantic way the two heroes had held hands the entire time.

“It was so wonderful, Alya,” Marinette gushed. “Just having that connection, feeling like he was my lifeline and we were in this together.”

There were no texts from Marinette announcing her intention to pay Alya a visit.

Eyes narrowed in apprehension, she grabbed the lamp off of her desk and slowly approached the sliding glass door.

She threw back the curtain and came face to face with a rather surprised-looking Chat Noir, his hand raised to gently knock again.

Alya blinked.

Chat Noir returned the gesture, and then his eyes went to the lamp in Alya’s hand. His eyebrow slowly gained elevation.

He cleared his throat uncertainly. “Um…Good evening. Sorry to startle you?”

Alya smiled sheepishly, setting the lamp down and unlocking the door. “Chat Noir. Hi. Sorry. Just…never hurts to be cautious.”

“Were you expecting a burglar on the fourth story?” he couldn’t help but wonder.

“Usually, it’s an akuma,” she sighed, stepping out of his way and beckoning him in.

“Oh,” he whispered as the lamp suddenly seemed less ridiculous. “Sorry.”

“No worries,” she assured. “Come in.”

He hesitated, toing the floor of her balcony nervously with the tip of his boot. “Actually…I don’t think I need to come in. I don’t want to take up much of your time, but…Ladybug and I had a talk earlier tonight, and she said that it was at your insistence, so I really wanted to thank you, because I cannot even begin to describe to you what it means to me to have that kind of closure, so…”

He bit the inside of his cheek, mentally chiding himself to stop rambling. “Sorry. I’ll get to the point. I was just wondering if you knew…?” He tipped his head to the side, struggling to summon up the words. “Earlier, did I accidentally…?”

Alya watched him fidget for a moment before it finally dawned on her what he was on about.

She smiled affectionately and rolled her eyes. “Adrien…get in here.”

“Oh,” he squeaked. “Shoot.”

She gave her eyes another roll, took him by the elbow, and forcibly manhandled Paris’s second favourite superhero into her bedroom. “Get in here you adorkosaurus and tell me about your romantic rooftop heart-to-heart with Ladybug,” she chuckled, pulling him in and tugging the curtain closed behind him.

“You’re not going to tell anyone, are you?” he sighed, letting his transformation drop.

She gave him “the look” and then motioned for him to flop down on her bed. “Cupcake, I’m not even going to tell _Marinette_ ,” she snorted as she went back to her desk.

“How did you figure it out?” he sighed, collapsing into Alya’s throw pillows.

“It was the fact that you knew Ladybug well enough to confess your love and be turned down by her over the course of several years…and then I may have interrogated her about people who had confessed their undying love,” Alya summarized.

“Well played,” Adrien granted. “Ladybug is going to be so disappointed in me.”

“Don’t tell her,” Alya instructed, cutting the [Gordian knot](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordian_Knot).

He started to argue. “But—”

“—Just don’t,” she interrupted. “I’m not telling anyone. I’d cut my tongue out first. You’re safe. Paris is safe. Ladybug is better off not knowing.”

“I like her,” Plagg snickered, floating over to land on Alya’s desk next to her mousepad. “She’s got a good head on her shoulders.”

Alya blinked at the flying cat demon. “I’m guessing you’re his kwami? I’m Alya. Nice to meet you.”

“Plagg,” Plagg supplied. “Charmed, I’m sure. Do you have any cheese?”

“Plagg,” Adrien groaned. “You are the worst houseguest.”

Five minutes later, Plagg was happily distracted with the remnants of a wheel of Brie that Alya was fairly certain no one was planning on eating, and Adrien and Alya were free to continue their discussion.

“Just. Don’t. Tell. Her,” Alya reemphasized.

Adrien frowned uncertainly. “Do you really think that’s okay?”

“It’s for the best,” she assured. “Trust me. I care about you, Sunshine, and Ladybug is my friend too, so please believe that I have the best intentions in my heart when I say just don’t mention it.”

Adrien pursed his lips, weighing his options. “Well…if you’re the only one who knows and you don’t plan on telling anyone…I guess there’s no real harm done.”

“Precisely. And I’ve already been helpful to both you and Ladybug because I knew your identity, haven’t I?” she coaxed. “This is a good thing.”

A bright, sappy smile broke out on Adrien’s lips as he thought back to his Lady’s confession. Warmth and a sense of lightness again flooded his chest.

“I can’t find it within myself to disagree,” he confessed with a giddy laugh. “Thank you, Alya.”

“Hey, us bros look out for one another,” she chuckled, saving her article and shutting down her laptop for the night before swinging around in her desk chair to face Adrien.

“ _Soooo_?” she prompted, drawing out the vowel. “Last time I checked, bros gush about their romantic encounters with their crushes. I’m waiting for all the spicy details about your rooftop rendezvous with Ladybug. How was her love confession? Tell me all about it. None of it leaves this room, I swear.”

Adrien gave a trill of glee, hugging Alya’s throw pillow to his chest as he enthusiastically exclaimed, “Oh my gosh, Alya, it was the best!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you go. How was it? I hope you enjoyed the chapter. ^.^
> 
> I just have the final chapter to write, and I have a rough outline of what I want to do with it, but I haven't worked on it this week. ^.^; I got inspiration to work on someone's Christmas present, so I've been writing that. I hope to finish up Chapter Ten this weekend, though. Wish me luck!
> 
> Thanks for reading, guys. I'll see you again on Tuesday, 12/08/2020. Have a great weekend, and take care!
> 
> References:  
> Chopin Ballade No. 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZfNAVQ6H4o&feature=youtu.be&t=300  
> Gordian knot: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordian_Knot


	7. Encore Performance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alya encourages Marinette with unexpected results.  
> Ladybug visits Adrien.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys. I hope you're doing well. Sorry that I'm posting the chapter a little later than usual. I'm feeling really sick today. -.-; I might not get to replying to all of your comments, but I'll try to do that as soon as possible. Thanks for your understanding. Hopefully I'll start feeling better soon.
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> (P.S.: If you click on the link to the song "Superhero Girl", there's brief cursing in one part, but it's not pervasive.)

Marinette was still giddy from her heart-to-heart conversation with Chat Noir the next day as she flopped down on Alya’s bed and pulled the same throw pillow to her chest that Adrien had been squeezing excitedly the night before.

“It’s just so freeing!” she giggled. “It feels amazing to have it all out on the table finally. I should have told him years ago, but I was afraid he’d wear me down and make me change my mind if I gave him even a hint about my feelings. He’s so stubborn, Alya, and he doesn’t always think things through, but…” She finally took a breath as she beamed in awe of the outcome. “He really heard me about how dangerous it could be bringing romantic feelings into our partnership while Papillon is active. He heard me, and he respected my decision, Alya. He’s really grown over the past few years. He’s a lot more mature.”

“I’m happy for you, Girl,” Alya chuckled with an indulgent smile, giving up hope of getting any editing done. “Sooo…now that you’re all squared away with Chat Noir…are you ready to finally resolve the Adrien dilemma?”

Marinette sat up with a jolt, her euphoria fading. “What? _Now_?!”

“Well, yeah.” Alya shrugged as if it were a matter of course. “Didn’t you tell me last night that you’d told Chat Noir that you were tired of wasting time on the Adrien problem but that it seemed a shame to let all the years of your life you’ve already poured into this go to waste by not actually ever telling Adrien how you feel? I vote you get some closure, Marinette. The sooner the better.”

Marinette pursed her lips, not looking convinced. “I don’t know, Alya. I’m kind of having a good day. What would _really_ be a shame is if I ruined it by confessing to Adrien, making a fool out of myself, getting rejected, and completely messing up our friendship with my feelings.”

Alya groaned but resisted the urge to pull her hair out. She got up from her desk and went over to sit on the bed beside Marinette, taking her best friend’s hand in her own. “Marinette, listen to me.”

She fixed Marinette with an intent gaze, clearly enunciating, “He likes you. He really, really likes you, and if you bring him flowers and ask him on a date, he will be putty in your hands because he thinks you’re amazing.”

She wished she could break confidence with Adrien and just tell Marinette about Adrien’s crush on her, but she couldn’t bear to betray the poor cupcake like that. She wasn’t just his friend because he was Nino’s best friend and Marinette’s love interest anymore. True, it had started like that, but things had changed over the years. They were genuine friends now, and friends didn’t spill secrets entrusted to them, even if it would make setting up her two favourite idiots a heck of a lot easier.

“I don’t know, Alya,” Marinette sighed, looking away and focusing her gaze on the posters on Alya’s wall, not really seeing them. 

“Well, you could always just try,” Alya urged, strongly tempted to scream and bang her head against her desk. “Just really no pressure ask him if he wants to get coffee as a date. Seriously. Hand him a rose and say, ‘You know, I really like you, Adrien. Would you be interested in going on a date to see how things go? Maybe get coffee together?’ He will definitely say yes, I promise you. After he’s done blushing and processing that you, the great Marinette Dupain-Cheng, have deigned to notice him.”

Marinette rolled her eyes and turned back to glare, perturbed, at her friend. “Alya, he’s literally a model. He gets hit on all the time. There’s no way I’m going to fluster him by asking him out to coffee. I am under no delusion that Adrien Agreste thinks I’m out of his league. Thank you for the encouragement, but let’s try to keep expectations realistic.”

Alya tried not to pout. Screaming and pulling her hair were sounding really, really good.

Maybe she needed to just lock them in a closet together and not let them out until they kissed. That always worked in the movies, right?

“I think it’s more likely that he’ll like the rose, be flattered by my confession, but won’t feel the same way, so he’ll politely turn me down,” Marinette went on, oblivious to Alya’s mounting frustration.

“Well, then, go confess and get turned down politely, then. Then you’ll have your answer and be able to move on without regrets,” Alya snapped impatiently, causing Marinette to look at her in surprise.

“I’m sorry,” Marinette apologized uncertainly. “I know I’m a huge pain and you’ve been dealing with this for years now, but…I just can’t help it. The boy makes me stupid and nervous and…and he brings out all of my insecurities and fears. It’s just…I’ve put so much time and effort into this…for it to all be over in such an anticlimactic way…” She shook her head sadly. “I’m really sorry, Alya. I know I’m a mess. Thank you for putting up with me.”

Alya heaved an enormous sigh, pulling Marinette into a tight embrace. “Girl, I’m not mad at _you_. I’m mad because I want you to be happy, and you _can_ be if you would just get out of your own way. I’m sorry. I just want good things for you.”

Marinette squeezed back, burying her face in Alya’s hair. “Thanks, Alya. I don’t know what I would do without you. Thanks for being such an amazing friend.”

With a sigh, Alya pulled back, giving Marinette’s cheek an affectionate pat. “I’ll tell you what I’m going to do. I’m going to tell you a secret, but you can’t tell anyone I told.”

Marinette nodded. “Of course. What is it?”

“Adrien told me the other day that he has the biggest, most embarrassing crush on Ladybug,” Alya announced, praying that Adrien would forgive her once he and Marinette were blissfully happy together.

Marinette blinked in confusion. “He…what?”

“He’s over the moon for her,” Alya reiterated. “Total goner. Girl, he’s crazy about you. At least, a part of you. Knowing that, do you think you can confess to him? I mean, he already likes a part of you, and he’s always calling Marinette his ‘Everyday Ladybug’, so he obviously sees you in yourself, so...can you just ask him to get coffee with you now, please?” Alya begged, beyond desperate. “Maybe now it’ll be easier knowing he’s going to say yes.”

Marinette was still utterly taken aback. “He likes…Ladybug?”

“Yes,” Alya replied emphatically. “And guess who’s Ladybug.”

“…Me,” Marinette slowly realized.

“Yep.” Alya gave Marinette a clap on the back. “And I swear he thinks Marinette is just about as wonderful as Ladybug in every way, shape, and form, so go on out there and get yourself a date, okay?”

Marinette began to nod, the gears in her head starting to turn.

Adrien liked Ladybug. Marinette was Ladybug.

“Okay,” she giggled, feeling giddy at the sudden rush brought on by that realization. “Okay!”

“Awesome!” Alya cheered, feeling the weight of years of frustration finally come off her shoulders. “Now that that’s settled, let’s make lunch. All this matchmaking is exhausting work.”

Adrien was lounging upside down on his couch with his legs draped over the back, reading volume three of [Monokuro Shounen Shoujo](https://myanimelist.net/manga/11782/Monokuro_Shounen_Shoujo) when a tentative knock came at his window, startling him and causing him to drop his manga.

There, standing on the lip of his window, smiling sheepishly and waving at him, was Ladybug.

He’d had this dream many times over the years, so it took him a minute to discern that he was, in fact, very much awake. That accomplished, he hurriedly swung his legs around and got to his feet, rushing to open the already unlocked window for her.

“Ladybug. Um…hi. Hello. Come in. How are you this fine evening?” he babbled, motioning her in as he tried to get a hold of himself.

It was a little difficult as his mind flew off in a dozen different directions, including, _“Ladybug is in my bedroom.”_ , _“Does she know my identity?”_ , _“I’m wearing my pyjamas. Ladybug now knows I own handmade Ladybug pyjamas.”_ , _“I’m such a mess. Ladybug probably thinks I look like a slob.”_ , and _“Ladybug is in my bedroom!”_

“Good evening,” Ladybug greeted softly, a rosy blush highlighting her lovely cheekbones. “I’m really sorry to barge in unannounced like this. I hope I’m not interrupting.”

“Not at all!” he assured, maybe a little too loudly. “I’m glad you’re here. I mean…”

He rubbed at the back of his neck, wondering where the heck all these nerves were coming from. Hadn’t he just sat under the stars with her, holding her hand for nearly an hour the previous evening? There was just something about being there with her without the mask for him to hide behind. He felt so exposed as Adrien. It was one thing to be bold and speak his mind as a superhero whose mettle had been tested. Standing before her as just plain Adrien with nothing but fame, fortune, and good looks to recommend him was more than a little intimidating.

He cleared his throat, took a deep breath, and forced himself to act naturally.

“Sorry. I mean that it’s an honor to be paid a visit by Paris’s favourite hero,” he recovered nicely with a charming smile that his photographer always lavished praise upon.

Ladybug seemed to appreciate it, chuckling as her smile widened and her blush spread.

“Was there something in particular you needed, Ladybug?” he attempted to suss out the purpose of her visit. “Or, if this is purely a social call, that’s fine too,” he quickly added.

“Oh.” She gave a start, as if suddenly remembering herself. “Sorry. I guess it does feel pretty random having a superhero unexpectedly show up at your window. I was just…” She bit her lip and shifted her weight anxiously. “Sorry,” she laughed, making herself take a shaky breath. “Nervous. I’ve been trying to psych myself up to do this for a long time, so…”

She raised her hand, extending it out to him, and, for the first time, he noticed the single red rose she held.

His eyes widened as he looked back and forth between her and the flower, unsure of what to make of it.

“Here.” She offered him the rose again, her whole face now dusted red in embarrassment. “It’s for you. It…It goes with my suit,” she added, obviously flustered. She winced. “Not that that really means anything to you, but—”

“—Thank you,” he interrupted in an attempt to save her from any additional word vomit.

He reached out and took the rose with a warm, reassuring smile, still not sure what was going on but recognizing a need for intervention from his many years of friendship with Marinette.

Their fingers brushed, making Ladybug jump reflexively, even though he was certain there was no way she could have felt the touch through her suit.

“I love roses,” he continued. “My mother used to grow them, so I have many fond memories of the scent of roses, the feel of their petals, how pretty they look when the sun hits them just right…. It’s such a lovely gift, so thank you.”

He brought it up to his nose, closing his eyes as he inhaled its perfume.

Ladybug curled her fingers into fists, gathering her courage. She took a slow breath in, exhaled, and squeaked, “You’re hot! Get coffee with me?!”

Adrien’s eyes snapped open, and he stared at her in shock as he recalled what he had told Ladybug as Chat Noir the night before about confessing to her mystery boy.

Ladybug took his stunned silence the wrong way and began to panic. “No big deal! No pressure! Just…” She grimaced, groaning in frustration. “I am so sorry. I sound like a crazy fangirl. I swear I’m not like that. I-I like you, Adrien.” She looked back up at him with desperate tears beading in the corners of her eyes as she confessed, “I like you. I know we don’t know each other well, but, from what I’ve seen—your bravery, your determination, your unwillingness to give up—I like you, and I admire you, and I heard you were a fan of mine, so I thought…maybe we could go get coffee and get to know one another better. I’m not asking to be your girlfriend or for any kind of commitment or anything, but could we maybe just get coffee and see how it goes from there? Is that…too ridiculous to ask?”

Adrien was barely able to process all of the incoming information that she was throwing at him. It shouldn’t be possible, but…all signs were pointing to the mystery boy being _him_. Which meant that she really loved him, _both_ sides of him. Which meant that he probably knew her in real life because there was no way the smart, down-to-earth woman he knew would fall that hard for a boy she had only talked to in short snatches over the years. Ladybug wasn’t the type to devote herself wholeheartedly to a celebrity crush. She _knew_ him, and he was not allowing himself to think about that too hard because he knew how important her secret identity was to her, and it would be a total breech of trust for him to purposely try to figure her out, tempting as it may be.

Besides, now wasn’t the time for thinking. He needed to get ahold of himself and respond because she was panicking and likely to go into a full-on anxiety attack if he didn’t say something soon.

He awkwardly took her hands in his, careful not to smash the rose as he did so. “Ladybug, calm down. It’s okay. I am beyond flattered that you would even ask.”

“But you don’t feel the same way,” she immediately jumped to conclusions, a cold terror washing over her and tying her stomach into knots. “Oh my gosh! I’m so sorry to bother you! I—”

“—Ladybug,” he cut her off with a fond chuckle. “Listen to me. I am beyond flattered that you would even ask _because_ I have had an embarrassingly huge crush on you since I was thirteen, and I never thought someone as amazing and pretty and talented as you would ever deign to notice me.”

She blinked at him uncomprehendingly. “But…you’re so wonderful,” she informed him, sounding mystified. “How could someone _not_ notice you?”

Adrien smiled sadly as his eyes dropped to the side momentarily. “I’m afraid I don’t always see it the way you do.” He looked back up at her. “I’m sure you doubt yourself sometimes too, don’t you?”

Her mouth rounded into a small “o” of understanding.

“Yeah,” he chuckled. “I know I’m portrayed a certain way in the media, but the persona I put out there for public consumption isn’t necessarily the real me. I’m actually a huge dork and a little socially inept. I hope I don’t disappoint you.”

She shook her head vehemently. “No. No, not at all. I totally get that. I mean, the public thinks Ladybug is practically infallible, so I constantly feel like I have to live up to that image, but…I try my best, but it’s impossible to be perfect, so…but I could never be disappointed in you, Adrien,” she assured, giving his hand a squeeze that sent his heart soaring.

“The real you may be nerdy, but he’s also kind and valiant and creative and resilient,” she insisted. “I know you probably think you failed when I gave you the Snake Miraculous, but you most definitely didn’t.”

His eyebrow slowly arched at her assertion. “You don’t think so?”

She shook her head, stepping in closer. “Adrien, I was the one who didn’t set you up to succeed. I should have waited for Chat Noir. Maybe then it would have worked, but…looking back with a clearer head, that Miraculous wasn’t a good match for you in the first place, but you did an amazing job even then. You kept trying past the point when anyone else would have given up, and I was really impressed by that, impressed by you. No matter what you think of yourself, I’ll always think you’re amazing…so…coffee?”

She cocked her head to the side and gave him a hopeful smile.

It took a lot of self-control for Adrien not to jump up and down for joy. Instead, he grinned like the cat who’d gotten into the cream and squeezed her hands.

“I would _love_ to get coffee with you.” He almost squealed at the very thought. “Actually…would it be okay if I took you on a full-fledged date?” he inquired tentatively, pressing his luck. “If you just want to start with coffee to test the waters, that’s totally fine, but…” He trailed off, letting her make the call without pressuring her further.

“A date…would be nice,” she decided, her face starting to hurt from smiling so hard. “I’d really like to go on a date.”

His grin spread even wider at her answer, and he couldn’t help but bounce in place in his excitement. “Awesome! That is awesome. When? When works for you?”

“You probably have the busier schedule,” she pointed out with a chuckle. “I’m fairly flexible with advance warning so long as there’s no akuma attack. Maybe this coming Saturday or Sunday afternoon? Do either of those days work for you?”

He scanned his mental calendar thoughtfully before informing, “Saturday is probably best. My days typically start early or go late, so afternoon is usually best.” A thought suddenly occurred to him, causing him to frown. “Except that my father is constantly adding things to my schedule last minute, so… Sorry. I’ll try to get out of it if he tries anything like that Saturday, but if I do have to cancel on you, please know that it was completely out of my control and I would like nothing more than to be on a date with you.”

“No worries,” she chuckled, heart brimming over at that little tidbit of information.

Adrien was always so painfully sweet, and he said the most romantic things.

“I totally understand,” she assured. “Um…I should probably give you my number so that we can hash out the details via text and you can let me know if you do have to cancel.”

“Is it really okay for me to have your number?” he wondered, eyes going wide.

She worried her bottom lip between her teeth, rethinking the offer. “I mean…maybe. Obviously, don’t save my number under ‘Ladybug’ or anything, but it should be okay. I doubt you’re going to give it to anyone else or prank call me or anything, so…”

“I would never,” he assured.

He may have been tempted to call and bother her about mundane things as Chat Noir, but he would never abuse this trust she was placing in him as Adrien.

“Okay.” She gave a decisive nod. “Give me your number, and I’ll text you so that you’ll have mine.”

He readily complied and was soon in possession of the holy grail: Ladybug’s number. Of course, it probably wasn’t her personal number (Chat Noir’s number on his baton did not match Adrien’s), and he technically already had it on his Chat Noir phone, but the act of her giving it to him made it finally feel legitimate.

“What are you saving it as?” she inquired curiously, going up on the balls of her feet to try to catch a peek at his phone screen.

“‘Eve 6’,” he replied, turning the phone to show her once he was done. “They’re a band my friend Luka likes. They have a song called ‘[Superhero Girl](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29BOzwuC1Fc)’, so…” He shrugged. “My brain makes funny connections like that.”

But Ladybug wasn’t concerned with the automatic associations his brain made. She was too caught up in squinting at his screen in confusion. He’d saved her contact information to his favourites, and it wasn’t a long list: Gabriel Agreste, Alya (Lois Lane on Steroids) Césaire, Orpheus Couffaine, Eve 6, (Victor) le Gorille, Ninja Turtle Lahiffe, Maman, Nathalie, and…Princesse.

Her brow furrowed in confusion. “Who’s ‘Princesse’?”

Adrien’s eyes widened as he whipped his head around to stare at his phone in surprise, obviously not having thought twice about the nickname in years. “Oh. Yeah. Um…That would be Marinette. You know my friend Marinette Dupain-Cheng?”

She blinked at him blankly. “Uh…Yeah. Yeah, I know Marinette. That’s…an interesting nickname.”

The thing that had her most puzzled was how Chat Noir and Adrien had both come up with the same nickname for her. Was there something innately princess-like about Marinette that she just wasn’t aware of? Did she give off a damsel in distress vibe or something? She wasn’t sure how to feel about that.

“I think it’s fitting,” he replied, rubbing at the back of his neck. “Marinette’s really epic. I mean, don’t get me started because I can and will rant about how amazing this girl is, but she reminds me of a Disney princess. She’s so kind and so good and unbelievably clever. She always stands up for people and does the right thing and uses her creativity to solve problems and save the day. She’s the kind of everyday hero they make movies about, so…she’s more of a ‘kick butt and save the world’ princess than a princess in a tower, but a princess is a princess, and Marinette is a princess.”

He ended his speech with a little “it can’t be helped” shrug.

Meanwhile, Ladybug was trying not to internally combust because Adrien Agreste was the most precious, sweetest human being, and she loved him so much. How could he say such nice things about her with a completely straight face?!

“Wow.” She tried to clear her throat. “You… That’s…”

“A little intense?” he asked through a grimace. “Yeah,” he sighed. “I know. To be honest, I kind of have a bit of a crush on her.”

“What?!” she shrieked.

Her temperature shot through the roof, and her eyeballs felt like they were about ready to pop out of their sockets.

Adrien took her outburst the wrong way and instinctively put his hands up in a placating gesture. “Not to worry! Marinette only thinks of me as a friend. My crush is totally one-sided, and I’m extremely loyal as a partner. To a fault, actually,” he chuckled weakly, thinking of the years he’d continued to carry a flame for the woman in front of him to the exclusion of all others.

“If you and I decide we want to pursue a relationship, my feelings for Marinette won’t be an issue,” he assured. “Seriously. She really doesn’t think of me like that.”

Ladybug’s eyes narrowed as she wondered how on earth he could be so oblivious to her ridiculous crush on him. “How can you be so sure that Marinette doesn’t return your feelings?”

He shrugged. “She’s told me several times over the years that she doesn’t think about me that way. She’s a big fan of my father’s work, but her feelings for me are purely platonic. If Marinette was interested in me, she would have said something by now. She’s really brave and straightforward when she wants something. She’s not afraid of anyone. Heck, she’s even stood up to my father on my behalf at least twice a year, so…I’m pretty sure she’d say something if she were interested in me romantically.”

Ladybug had the distinct urge to go home and bang her head against one of the wooden beams supporting her loft.

She buried her frustration with herself, however, and pasted on the best appeased smile that she could. “Okay. Well. That sounds… That’s good.”

Adrien cringed. “I’m sorry. Developing feelings for Marinette wasn’t something I could really help. Is this a deal-breaker?”

She gave a start. “What?! No! Not at all. That’s… It’s… It’s good. It’s fine. You’re fine. Seriously. I just…I was a little taken aback, but I am still very much interested in you, and I have no doubt that you will be true to your word, and your feelings for Marinette won’t be an issue.”

“Oh,” he sighed in relief, his luminescent grin returning to light up the room once more. “Good. I’m so glad you feel that way because I am seriously looking forward to our date.”

She managed to smooth out her facial expression in order to give him a genuine smile. “Me too. …But I should get going. I didn’t mean to stay so long. I’ll text you about the details?”

He nodded enthusiastically. “Can’t wait.”

“Same,” she chuckled, stepping back and readying her yoyo. “Night, night, Beau Gosse.”

With a wink, she blew him a kiss and slipped off into the night.

He caught the kiss and pressed it to his heart, nearly swooning as he watched her go.

“Oh my God,” Plagg hissed in disgust, coming out of hiding in his sock drawer once the coast was clear. “I can’t believe she confessed to you as Ladybug. What was Tikki thinking, letting her do that?”

“Oh my gosh,” Adrien sighed dreamily, sinking down onto the couch and throwing his head back to laugh in unrestrained glee. “Plagg, she loves me! _I’m_ the other guy! I mean, I have to be, right? I just told her last night to tell the guy he was hot and ask him to coffee, and—”

“—Kid, I hate to burst your bubble, but you can’t secretly date your superhero partner,” Plagg interrupted, not sounding the least bit loathe to suck all the joy out of the moment. “You should tell Ladybug that you can’t date a masked superhero and then go ask your girlfriend out. We had a plan with the waiting until after Butterfly Breath was in jail to reveal identities and date Ladybug. You were supposed to be happy now with Marinette.”

Adrien chewed on the inside of his cheek as a large part of the joy he had felt seconds before faded.

Deep down, he knew Plagg was right, but…

“…But I want to date Ladybug _now_ ,” he whined, running his hands roughly back and forth through his hair.

Plagg shrugged. “Tough. Ever hear the expression that good things are worth waiting for?”

“I don’t like that expression,” Adrien pouted. “Haven’t I waited long enough already? Seven years is a long time, Plagg, and I feel like we’ve already wasted that time, so why can’t we just be happy together already?”

Slowly, Plagg shook his head. “But she doesn’t know you’re _you_. Do you really think you can live hiding that from her? You won’t feel like you’re being dishonest or tricking her? You won’t be disappointed because she doesn’t recognize you? She’s going to treat you differently as Adrien. Adrien isn’t her partner. Adrien isn’t her trusted best friend. It’s not going to be the same as when you’re Chat Noir with her.”

Adrien looked down at his feet, frowning, trying not to hear the things Plagg was saying.

“Ignoring the truth doesn’t make it less true, Kid,” Plagg added gently, floating over to land on Adrien’s head and affectionately start grooming his kitten.

“I know,” Adrien mumbled, reaching up to carefully scoop Plagg into his hand.

“Thanks, Plagg.” He brought the kwami down to his face to nuzzle.

“Sure thing,” Plagg promised, for once not putting up his usual aloof front. “…Think about it,” he urged. “The last thing you need is to be dating Ladybug and still be miserable. …Maybe talk about it with your one friend,” he suggested.

Adrien looked up. “You mean Alya?”

Plagg shrugged. “Sure. She’s supposedly Ladybug’s friend, isn’t she? Maybe she can help you talk it out.”

“Can we go now?” Adrien inquired hopefully, perking up.

Plagg sighed, his whole body slumping. “Oh, all right, but let me get some cheese first, will you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. How was the Ladrien content? Did I do okay? This was actually really difficult for me to write for some reason. I've never written romantic Ladrien interactions before, so this is a little out of my wheelhouse.
> 
> Translation Note: "Beau Gosse" is what Marinette calls Adrien in the voicemail she accidentally leaves on his phone in L'Imposteur/Copy Cat. It means "handsome guy/boy". "Gosse" is kind of a slangy word for "kid", but "beau gosse" refers to a young man who is handsome/sexy.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I'll see you again on Friday, 12/11/2020. Take care everyone!
> 
> References:  
> Monokuro Shounen Shoujo: https://myanimelist.net/manga/11782/Monokuro_Shounen_Shoujo  
> Superhero Girl: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29BOzwuC1Fc


	8. Bros First

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nino turns what was originally supposed to a thousand-word scene into two chapters because he loves his bro and flips out a little bit when he discovers that Adrien is Chat Noir.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys. I'm still sick. -.-; I thought I was doing better, so I signed on to work today, but I only made it six hours in before I started feeling markedly worse. Send me positive vibes, please. I'll try to reply to as many comments as I can, but some may have to wait until tomorrow. Thanks for your patience and understanding. You're all wonderful. <3
> 
> Enjoy!

Alya and Nino were curled up on her bed watching [Lupin](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3tVDKuORi8) on her laptop when a slightly impatient knock came at the sliding glass door out to her balcony.

Nino frowned in utter bafflement. “What the hell? How is there someone knocking on your fourth story balcony door?”

Alya stiffened as a wave of dread rolled over her. She glanced at her phone to find she had zero unread texts from Marinette announcing a visit.

That didn’t necessarily mean it _wasn’t_ Ladybug out on her balcony, but Alya took that as a good sign because it would certainly be a lot less awkward and suspicious if it were her _boyfriend’s_ superhero crush out there instead of her own.

“Al?” Nino prompted questioningly.

Alya mentally crossed her fingers as she sat up and set the laptop aside, going over to pull back the curtain, hoping against all hope that it was their resident cat-boy and that Nino would be so distracted that he wouldn’t ask difficult questions.

Chat Noir had his hand raised, just about to knock again, when Alya opened the curtain and unlocked the door.

Instant relief washed across his face. “Oh my gosh, Alya! You will never believe what just happened to me! I _have_ to talk to you.”

And then Nino came up behind Alya and gaped at the hero, making Chat Noir freeze.

“Is Chat Noir on your balcony, or am I hallucinating?” Nino wondered in a state of borderline shock.

“I am so sorry,” Chat spit out, heat rising on his cheeks. “I didn’t mean to interrupt. I…I can explain!”

Nino turned to Alya. “He visits you too?”

Now it was Alya’s turn for confusion. “Wait. He visits _you_?” she returned incredulously as she looked back and forth between her boyfriend and the superhero.

Nino shrugged. “Yeah. He started coming over, like…when we were fourteen, fifteen. We play video games and watch movies and stuff. Sometimes I run my mixes by him and get his opinion. How long has he been visiting you?”

Alya pursed her lips, turning to frown reproachfully at Chat Noir. “You’ve been visiting him for _years_?”

“I can explain?” Chat didn’t sound so sure as his shoulders rose up to meet his ears. “Or maybe I should come back some other time. I’m clearly crashing your date.”

Alya rolled her eyes and grabbed Chat Noir by the arm, hauling him into the room. “Get in here.”

She quickly relocked the door behind him and drew the curtain before turning back to Nino and pointing accusatorially at Chat Noir. “Do you know who he is?”

Nino’s brow gradually furrowed as he felt even more lost. “Um…yeah. He’s Chat Noir. You run a blog about him?”

Alya groaned, dropping her head as she shook it. “No. No. Like, do you know his secret identity?”

“No,” Nino snorted as if she’d made some ludicrous suggestion. But then he paused, and the amusement left him. “Holy crap. Wait. Do _you_?”

Alya turned her mystified expression on Chat Noir. “How does he not know who you are if you two have been hanging out for years? Is my boyfriend dumb?”

“Hey,” Nino whined.

Chat put his hands up in surrender. “No. He just never asked, and I didn’t tell him.” He looked back to Nino. “I’m really sorry. I didn’t tell Alya either. I’ve never told anyone. She just figured me out.”

“Okay?” Nino replied, feeling like he should say something but not really sure why he should care. “I mean…that’s fine, Mec. I get the secret identities thing. You’re not _supposed_ to tell me, so it’s not really a bad thing that I don’t know. I don’t have to know what name appears on your birth certificate to be your friend, so…it doesn’t really matter.”

Chat Noir winced, and his expression turned guilty as he looked at Nino with eyes pleading for forgiveness. “It kind of does matter, and I’m sorry I never said anything…. Detransformation.”

Nino’s eyes widened as the suit faded in a burst of neon green light, leaving Adrien Agreste standing before him in the Ladybug pyjamas Marinette had made him for his birthday two years prior.

“I am so sorry,” Adrien whimpered, bracing for the fallout.

Nino let out a guttural curse and then repeated it three times in quick succession.

Adrien winced, repeating, “I’m sorry. If I could have told you I would have, but Ladybug is super strict about the secret identities rule.”

“No, it’s cool,” Nino assured lightheadedly, still staring at Adrien like he had just revealed that he had been leading a double life for more than half a decade now. “Seriously. I totally get it. I’m just… Holy crap, you’re Chat Noir,” Nino began to snicker maniacally, sounding like he was hyperventilating.

“Yeah,” Adrien replied lamely, grimacing. “I’m Chat Noir…. Are you okay?”

“I need to sit down,” Nino announced, promptly sinking to the floor and flopping over onto his back.

“Babe, are you okay?” Alya spoke up tentatively, starting to get concerned in earnest.

“Yep,” he continued to laugh. “All good. My best bro is just a superhero. That’s all. Normal day.”

“I am so sorry,” Adrien reiterated, not sure what else to say or do.

Alya’s reaction had seemed so blasé. He hadn’t been prepared for Nino to freak.

“No.” Nino held up a hand to stop him. “Seriously. It’s good. You’re good. I’m just…processing. Poorly. I mean… _I’m_ sorry, Mate. I feel like I should have known or something.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t,” Alya hummed. “He told you about his mystery girl crush, didn’t he? How did you _think_ he knew her?”

Nino threw up his hands in exasperation without moving up off the floor. “I don’t know! I thought she dropped by his house or something! I’ve had a standing friend date night with Chat Noir the past five years! It wasn’t too farfetched to think she visited Adrien like that too. I mean, I would totally sneak in to see him and break him out to go have some fun if I had a Miraculous permanently. That would be my number one abuse of power.”

“That’s really sweet,” Adrien cooed, touched that the thought had even crossed Nino’s mind.

“Romantic rooftop escapades with your girlfriend wouldn’t be top on your list?” Alya snickered, amused.

“Bros before you-know-whats,” Nino announced vehemently, causing Alya to laugh harder.

She turned to smirk at Adrien, elbowing his arm. “Well, good to know where his priorities stand. I always suspected he loved you more.”

Adrien rolled his eyes, returning the playful nudge. “He loves us the same but differently.”

Nino groaned, hissing a sibilant curse as a realization struck him.

“What?” Alya inquired, arching an eyebrow as her boyfriend covered his face with his hands and rolled around on the floor in mortification.

“You okay, Mec?” Adrien inquired hesitantly, leaning in a bit to peer down at his best friend curiously.

“No!” Nino whined, propping himself up on his elbows. “You let me make a total fool of myself!”

Adrien quirked an eyebrow. He debated making a remark to the effect of Nino making a fool of himself with or without Adrien’s help but ultimately decided against it, instead going with, “When?”

Nino pointed accusingly. “You let me go on and on about my embarrassing crush on Chat Noir!”

Alya clapped a hand over her mouth to keep from bursting out laughing. To be fair, she’d felt a little dumb when she’d discovered that she’d been raving to Marinette about her superhero alter ego all these years, but Nino seemed more embarrassed whereas Alya had been able to easily laugh at herself in retrospect.

“I was flattered,” Adrien insisted, crouching down so that he was on Nino’s level. “Seriously. It’s not a big deal. I’m used to people fawning over Adrien’s stupid model face all the time, and Chat Noir’s fans can be a little…um…weird…most of the time, so it was really refreshing that someone thought he was attractive as a person,” he admitted sheepishly, rubbing at the back of his neck.

Nino sat up, frowning at Adrien, clearly not impressed. “Dude, I went on, like, _rants_ about your ass.”

Adrien shrugged. “I have a very nice asset, and it looks objectively better in magical leather. You have good taste in men.”

Nino’s frown morphed into a miffed stare of disapproval. “This isn’t weird for you at all, is it?”

Adrien flashed another sheepish grin as he shook his head. “Afraid not. Besides, even if it was, I’m sure you’re completely cured of your temporary insanity now that you know just who it is under the mask.”

Nino let out a bark of laughter, roughly tussling Adrien’s hair. “Fat chance, Mec! Nah, now that I know, I’m even more in love with you.” He turned to Alya to mutter a quick, “Sorry, Al,” before returning his attention to his best friend. “Adrien Agreste, will you marry me?”

“I thought you’d never ask!” Adrien cackled, nearly knocking Nino over backwards as he launched himself at his friend, wrapping Nino in a tight hug. “Can we have an April wedding? I’m a [spring](https://anuschkarees.com/blog/2013/09/24/colour-analysis-part-i-finding-your-type), so I look best in bright, light, warm colours. I think you’re probably an autumn, so deep, warm colours would suit you best. We might need to hire a consultant.”

“Whatever you say, My Love,” Nino tittered, his sides beginning to hurt from laughter.

Alya gave a snort as she put her hands on her hips. “Hey! What am I? Yesterday’s garbage? I thought _we_ were getting married!”

“You don’t even believe in marriage,” Nino continued to laugh.

Alya crossed her arms and gave her head a little toss. “True, but your pestering was starting to make me come around to the idea.”

“Well, how about Adrien can be my sexy househusband, and you can be my wild, adventurous lover?” he suggested.

Adrien shrugged, pulling back out of the hug. “I’m down with that.”

Alya considered for a moment and then shrugged as well. “Yeah, okay. That works for me. I don’t actually believe in marriage anyway.”

Nino gave his eyes a fond roll, turning to Adrien. “I’ll wear her down one of these days.”

“Definitely,” Adrien agreed and then paused, suddenly looking uncertain. “…Are we okay?”

Nino pushed all joking aside and really looked at his friend. “Yeah. I’m not mad or whatever you were worried about. I get that you couldn’t tell me, even though you wanted to. When I first became Carapace, I wanted to tell you too, but Ladybug was pretty clear about the rules, so…”

He inhaled slowly, taking Adrien in. “But, man… Holy crap…. You’re Chat Noir.”

Adrien nodded timidly. “Yeah.”

Abruptly, tears sprang forth from the corners of Nino’s eyes and began spilling down his cheeks. “You get beaten up a lot.”

Adrien winced, replying softly, “Yeah.”

“That’s…” Nino swallowed and tried again. “That was hard enough to watch when you were just Chat Noir…. I don’t think I can do this, knowing it’s _you_ getting thrown around like a rag doll.”

“Sorry,” Adrien whispered, wishing there was some way to make it easier. “I really am sorry, but it’s my job.”

Nino’s eyes widened in fear, and he cursed once more, breathlessly.

Adrien cocked his head to the side in question.

Nino shook his head, his bottom lip beginning to tremble as the tears came harder and faster. He took Adrien’s face in his hands, and his voice cracked as he whimpered, “You d-die…sometimes.”

Adrien held Nino’s gaze, mountains of apologies filling his eyes as he nodded sadly in confirmation.

It was then that Alya beckoned to Plagg who had curled up on top of one of the speakers on her desk. “Cheese,” she mouthed, motioning for him to follow her out into the kitchen to give the guys some privacy.

Plagg willingly complied, floating over to hide in the hood of her hoodie as she slipped soundlessly out of the room.

Meanwhile, Nino, closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, trying to hold in the whirling spiral of emotions he was feeling.

Adrien scooted closer, leaning in to rest his forehead against Nino’s. “Shhh,” he coaxed, wrapping his arms around his friend. “It’s okay. I’m okay, Nino.”

“Sometimes you’re not, though,” Nino hiccupped bitterly.

“Only for a little while,” Adrien added, trying to appease. “I _try_ to be careful. I really did hear you when you chewed Chat Noir out for being reckless. I was listening, and I’ve tried not to jump into danger unnecessarily…. It’s just…sometimes it _is_ necessary.”

Nino pulled back to look Adrien in the face, his eyes filled with fierce determination. “I need you to do something for me, promise me something.”

Adrien readily nodded. “Of course.”

“Talk to Ladybug for me,” Nino instructed. “Convince her to give me the Turtle Miraculous full-time.”

Adrien’s eyes widened in surprise. “But—”

“—No,” Nino cut him off. “Convince her. Don’t take no for an answer. Don’t tell me it’s dangerous or some crap like that. Bros don’t let bros stay sidelined. I can protect you. I can keep you safe. _Let me_ help, Adrien. Let me be your shield. That’s what _my_ job is supposed to be.”

Slowly, Adrien began to nod. As much as he wanted his best friend as far away from danger as possible, he completely understood how Nino felt. If their situations were reversed, Adrien would do anything he could to make Nino safer.

“Okay. I’ll talk to her,” Adrien promised, “and I will bug the hell out of her until she gives in.”

Nino let out a long sigh of relief as he nodded. “Okay. All right. Good enough for now…. Thanks, Mec.”

“Thank _you_ ,” Adrien stressed, leaning in to press a butterfly’s wing beat of a kiss to Nino’s cheek.

Nino laughed, pulling Adrien into a crushing hug. He gave Adrien’s cheek a sloppy smooch, declaring, “Love you, Man.”

Adrien returned the laughter with interest, settling into Nino’s embrace, finding comfort there. “Love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, like I said in the chapter summary, this was originally supposed to be a quick, one-thousand-word scene, but then Nino kind of freaked out and needed a minute. ^.^; I hope you enjoyed the platonic Adrino fluff. I seriously love these two. They're the best bros.
> 
> Next chapter will be Alya and Adrien and Nino hashing the Ladybug situation out, and then Chapter Ten will be the first part of the Ladrien date.
> 
> Speaking of which, I finished Chapter Ten last night...at which point I discovered that I need more chapters to fit in the wrap-up of the date and the conclusion of the story. -.-; Oh, well. You guys like content, right? Right. Please ignore the slowly increasing chapter count. ^.^;
> 
> Incidentally, has anyone else read the Lupin books by Maurice Leblanc? I'm eying that new Netflix show suspiciously, ready to be pleasantly surprised or predictably disappointed. I hope I'm surprised. Fingers crossed. ^.^
> 
> I'll see you again on Tuesday, 12/15/2020. Take care everyone!
> 
> References:  
> Lupin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3tVDKuORi8  
> Seasons/Colours: https://anuschkarees.com/blog/2013/09/24/colour-analysis-part-i-finding-your-type


	9. War Room

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alya, Nino, and Adrien conference about what to do about the Ladrien and Adrienette situations.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! I hope your week is going well. I'm doing a little better today. I still feel kind of under the weather, but I don't feel like death anymore. ^.^; Today I discovered [Brahms's Piano Concerto No. 2 in Bb major Op. 83](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWoFaPwbzqE), and I'm obsessively listening to it over and over. XD The second and fourth movements are my favourites. The first movement is quite stellar as well. The third movement is pretty but a little boring. It does have some really great moments, though. I really like this piece!
> 
> Ahem. I hope you enjoy the chapter!

When Alya returned ten minutes later, the boys had gotten up off the floor and were snuggling comfortably on the bed.

Alya could tell from the way that Nino had Adrien wrapped in a tight hug that he was feeling uneasy, insecure, and extremely protective. He would not be letting Adrien out of his sight for a while, so Alya could kiss the thought of any amorous activities with her boyfriend that evening goodbye. He needed to keep Adrien close so that he could feel Adrien’s warmth, reassure himself that his best friend was, indeed, alive and well and very much safe.

Alya hadn’t really stopped to think about the danger her friends were constantly in after learning their identities. She had been too caught up in the juicy details of superhero life and romance. It hadn’t occurred to her to be concerned about the never-ending peril they faced.

Suddenly she felt a little ill and had the strong urge to call Marinette just to tell her she loved her. She was sorely tempted to join Adrien and Nino in their snuggle pile.

Instead of giving in to anxiety, she took a deep breath and pushed those feelings aside for later. Right now, it was Nino’s turn to be vulnerable and raw. She could stay strong for now and wait to have her own freak-out when Nino got his feet back under him again.

“How are you lovebirds doing?” she called with a cheerful, teasing lilt to her voice, trying to lighten the atmosphere.

“I think Nino has annexed me,” Adrien reported in amusement with a twinge of guilt.

“Yeah. You’re gonna have to pry him out of my cold, dead hands,” Nino snorted good-naturedly. “He’s mine now.”

Alya shrugged, coming to sit down on the bed beside them. “I always knew you two were sort of a package deal, but this is a bit much, don’t you think?” she joked.

Nino lifted his head from Adrien’s chest to give Alya an earnest look. “Hey. So…would it be really weird if I asked if he could stay the night?” He looked down at Adrien. “Would that be weird for you?”

“It’s not weird for me so long as it doesn’t make Alya uncomfortable.” Adrien looked to Alya for the final decision.

Alya pursed her lips. “I mean, the only thing that might be uncomfortable for me is that the bed’s not really made for three people. But I don’t have a problem going and sleeping on the couch if I wake up and don’t have enough space.”

Adrien grimaced. “I wouldn’t want to kick you out of your own bed. It’s already bad enough that I’m interrupting your quality time together. I’m sorry.”

Alya waved his apologies away. “Cupcake, it’s fine. The couch is very comfortable, and Nino and I can always take a rain check on quality time. I kind of get the impression that Nino needs to listen to your heartbeat for a couple hours or else he’s going to have a meltdown.”

“I’m not gonna flip out anymore,” Nino grumbled petulantly, resting his head back down on Adrien’s chest.

Meanwhile, Adrien’s mouth and eyes rounded into wide “O”s of understanding.

“If you’re sure,” Adrien gave a token protest only to be waved off again by Alya.

“It’s all good. Stay the night,” she insisted. “I mean, you’re already in your pyjamas, so why not? But to get back to what you’re doing here in the first place, did you say you had something you needed to talk to me about?” She glanced at Nino. “Was that, like, a private thing?”

Adrien shook his head and sat up (much to Nino’s displeasure).

Nino repositioned himself so that he was sitting with his back to the bookshelf built into the wall above Alya’s bed, his knee perpendicular to and pressing up against Adrien’s leg.

“Actually, it’s even better to have the both of you to bounce things off of,” Adrien replied, chewing on the inside of his cheek. “I don’t know what to do. I know Plagg’s probably right, but…” He paused, realizing that Nino didn’t know who Plagg was. “My kwami,” he explained and then looked around, realizing that he didn’t know where the cat deity had gotten to or what havoc he was wreaking.

“Plagg?” he called, voice a little high and tinny in alarm.

“Here.” Plagg floated up out of Alya’s hood, still munching on the chunk of [Gruyère](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gruy%C3%A8re_cheese) she had given him. He went over to Nino and landed on his knee. “Plagg,” he introduced himself, holding out a stubby paw which Nino carefully took between two fingers.

“Nino. Nice to meet you, Mec.”

“I dislike you least,” Plagg announced before tossing the remainder of the Gruyère into his mouth and flying off to retake his perch on Alya’s computer speaker.

“He means that you’re his favourite,” Adrien translated with a fond smile. “He pretends to be a little gremlin, but he’s a big softie on the inside.”

“Why don’t I get to be your favourite, Plagg?” Alya whined, shooting the kwami a betrayed look. “I gave you cheese.”

Plagg shrugged. “You’ll have to do a lot better than that. _Luka_ keeps cheese in his minifridge specifically for me.”

Alya and Nino whipped their heads around to stare at Adrien.

“ _Luka_ knows about you being Chat Noir?” Alya accused. “I thought you didn’t tell anybody?”

“I _didn’t_ ,” Adrien groaned. “I just have perceptive friends. I’d been visiting him for maybe three months as Chat Noir when, one night, out of nowhere, he asked if I wanted to detransform and feed my kwami because I’d been transformed for so long, and I was like, ‘But then you’ll know my identity,’ and he was like, ‘[Perfect Fifth](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfect_fifth)…seriously?’ So…yeah. I’m apparently really obviously me…but I don’t know. _Nino_ didn’t recognize me, and I’m pretty sure Kagami has no idea.”

“You hang out with Kagami as Chat Noir?” Nino frowned, trying to picture it.

Adrien shrugged. “She’s like me. She doesn’t get to leave the house much, so I come visit her and keep her company.”

“Aww,” Alya cooed. “That’s really thoughtful of you.”

“I know what it’s like,” Adrien explained sadly. “And I really like spending time with Kagami. She can be a little prickly at times, but she’s a good friend.”

“Who else do you hang out with as Chat Noir?” Nino couldn’t help but wonder. “I don’t know why I always thought I was the only one. Guess I just wanted to be special.”

Adrien grimaced, feeling bad. “Sorry. You _are_ special…but Chat Noir actually has a pretty active social life.”

“Fair,” Nino sighed, shrugging it off.

A somber expression drifted onto Adrien’s face. “It was hard always being under lock and key at home, never permitted to spend time with friends or participate in group activities, so…I actually end up sneaking out most nights. Like, I’m over at Marinette’s all the time.” He bit his lip thoughtfully. “I don’t think she knows it’s me, though.”

“She _definitely_ doesn’t,” Alya grumbled in frustration.

“Her parents might, though,” Adrien admitted. “I’m about ninety percent positive that Sabine knows. Tom is fifty-fifty.”

Nino’s frown turned skeptical. “Her parents? You hang out with her parents?”

Adrien looked down at the bedspread, blushing. “Yeah? I mean…at first, I just went over to see Marinette, but then it felt kind of weird being up in her room late at night without her parents knowing, and I knew they were super chill, so Marinette and I explained the situation with my father not letting me out of the house much, and they were fine with it. I mean, there are ground rules like no unauthorized sleepovers unless I’m having a crisis or don’t feel safe at home or something like that, but then they started inviting me over to cook and have dinner with them when they found out I eat alone most of the time, so…yeah. Tom and Sabine kind of adopted me.”

He looked up with a helpless shrug and a sheepish smile.

Alya clicked her tongue and shook her head. “Boy, you’re already getting in good with the future in-laws.”

“ _Alya_ ,” Adrien groaned. “Stop.”

“I’m just telling it like it is, Cupcake,” she snickered. “You’ll see. Any day now, you and Marinette are gonna start dating, and you’ll be married with three kids, a hamster, a dog, and a cat before you know it, and _then_ —”

“—This is me seriously asking you to stop.” Adrien shot her a wounded look.

Alya put her hands up, dropping the topic like it had stung her. “Sorry. This is me stopping.”

Nino nodded approvingly, impressed that Alya had learned better than to press Adrien’s boundaries. That was something she had struggled with at times: pushing forward once she got an idea in her head without stopping to think about how her words and actions affected others. He was really proud that she was working on it.

A bashful smile slowly formed on Adrien’s lips as he gave Alya a grateful nod. “Thanks.”

She shot him a wink and abruptly changed topics. “So, I’m kind of ticked that I’m the only one you seem to have decided not to visit as Chat Noir besides Chloé.”

“You run a blog on which you post articles speculating about my identity, and it was once your life’s goal to unmask me,” Adrien retorted sassily. “And I don’t visit Chloé because she’s practically the only one of my friends my father actually allows me to see whenever I want anyway, so there was no need. Plus, she thinks Chat Noir is a loser.”

Alya rolled her eyes. “I’m sorry, Snowflake, but the blog’s mainly about your partner. There may be _some_ articles about your identity, but Ladybug was always my main focus.”

“But you were right,” Nino chimed in, causing both Alya and Adrien to turn to blink at him. “The very first identity speculation post you did about Chat Noir was that he was secretly Adrien Agreste. You even posted that image you’d made photoshopping cat ears and a mask on Adrien’s picture.”

“It was a joke,” Alya moaned, covering her face with her hand. “Everyone knew it was a joke.”

“Some people didn’t,” Adrien sighed.

“I thought you made some compelling arguments like them both being blonde,” Nino offered encouragingly.

Alya deflated, shoulders slumping as her head dropped to her chest.

“If I had visited you as Chat Noir, are you telling me you wouldn’t have badgered me for details about Ladybug and pestered me for an interview?” Adrien challenged.

All Alya could do was groan, unable to defend herself. “Yeah. Okay. I can see why you didn’t come visit the obsessive Ladybug fangirl. Case closed.”

“So, you’re not upset?” Adrien verified hesitantly.

Alya shook her head. “Nope. Well…maybe a little bit, but that’s on me. I _do_ get it, so…all good, Cupcake,” she assured with a conciliatory smile. “…So…you needed to talk to us about something?”

Adrien’s eyes went wide as he remembered. “You will never guess who asked me out on a date!”

Alya’s jaw dropped. “Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh, it’s happening!” She began to bounce on the bed, clapping her hands in excitement. “Marinette finally asked you out!”

Adrien’s wide-eyed expression crumpled into a frown. “What? No. Wait. Did Marinette actually say that she was going to ask me?”

Alya’s elation faded into confusion. “I mean…yeah. She was just over here a couple hours ago, and, when she left, I _thought_ we had reached an understanding that she was going to ask you to get coffee.”

“Shoot,” Adrien hissed, brow furrowing. “Shoot. This makes things even worse.”

“Cupcake, you’ve lost me,” Alya confessed, rubbing at the bridge of her nose. “Marinette didn’t ask you out?”

“No.” He shook his head. “ _Ladybug_ did, so if Marinette asks me now, I have to say no, right? I can’t…like…go on dates with both of them?” he replied uncertainly, looking to Nino for permission. “Because that would be bad, right? I couldn’t, like, go on a date with Ladybug and then go on a date with Marinette later? Could I? At least until someone says something about making the relationship exclusive?”

Nino shook his head. “Mec. No. You’ve got to be upfront about that kind of thing; otherwise, they’re going to beat you up when they find out, and someone’s going to get akumatized.”

The hopeful expression slid off of Adrien’s face as he dropped his head in defeat. “But I want to date _both_ of them.”

“Well, maybe when Marinette asks you out, tell her the truth and see what she thinks,” Nino suggested judiciously. “Depending on what she says, talk to Ladybug and see what she thinks. Honesty is the best policy here. Isn’t that right, Al?”

Alya was too busy trying to wrap her mind around the ever increasingly more confusing situation to hear at first.

“Al,” Nino called again.

She snapped to attention, hawk eyes zeroing in on Adrien. “Wait. _Ladybug_ asked you out?”

Adrien nodded, wailing mournfully, “Why is this happening to me? For _years_ no one’s been interested, and now the two most amazing girls on the face of the planet both decide to ask me out at the same time. I’m cursed, guys!”

“Wait,” Alya repeated, mental gears still stuck and refusing to turn as she attempted to process how her fool-proof plan had failed. “Ladybug asked out _Chat Noir_? I thought you two decided last night that, even though you loved each other, you couldn’t date until Papillon was no longer an issue. Did she change her mind?”

Nino’s eyebrows shot up into his hairline. “Clearly I missed a plot-relevant episode somewhere. Lady Noir is canon now?”

Adrien nodded excitedly, momentarily forgetting his woes. “Oh my gosh, Nino. She loves me! She just thinks our feelings for each other will screw up our teamwork, so she doesn’t want to date yet, but she said that after Papillon’s defeated, we can finally be together!”

“Congratulations, Bro!” Nino laughed with a wide grin, giving Adrien a celebratory clap on the back. “That’s awesome!”

“I know,” Adrien giggled. “And it gets even better because earlier tonight she came by my room and asked me out as Adrien. I think Adrien is the guy she’s been turning Chat Noir down for this whole time. Nino, I think she really loves me!”

“What?!” Alya snapped, cutting off Nino’s response before he could give it. “She asked you out as Adrien as _Ladybug_?!”

Adrien and Nino both stared at Alya in concern as smoke started to billow from her ears and nostrils.

“Um…yeah,” Adrien responded tentatively. “Are you okay, Alya?”

“No!” Alya shrieked, reaching up to grip her hair. “You can’t date a masked superhero! What is wrong with that girl?!”

Nino leaned forward and gently loosened Alya’s fingers so that she wouldn’t hurt herself in her outrage. “Deep breaths, Al.”

Meanwhile, Adrien grimaced. “Yeah. That’s what Plagg said too. Do you think I should text her and call things off?” He stuck out his bottom lip in a pout, obvious not too keen on the idea of cancelling.

“Let me think,” Alya requested, pursing her lips as deep trenches formed in her brow.

They sat there in silence for nearly ten seconds until Alya suddenly broke it once more.

“No. Don’t cancel,” she decided, reformulating her plan as she spoke. “Go on the date.”

Adrien looked to Nino and then Alya. “You really think it’s okay? I was a little worried that it’s technically lying to her for me to date her as a civilian without telling her I’m Chat Noir, but…”

“Well, she’s not exactly telling you who she is either, is she?” Alya snorted indignantly. “She’s being equally duplicitous, don’t you think?”

Adrien frowned, looking down at the zebra-print duvet. “Yeah,” he sighed. “The thought had crossed my mind. I think…maybe she knows me when she’s not Ladybug. That’s the only way her feelings for me make sense because Ladybug has been turning Chat Noir down for her mystery guy for years now, so if Adrien is the mystery guy, she has to _know_ me, right?”

He looked up at Alya, eyes begging for clarity. “You know her, right? She wouldn’t waste _years_ pursuing a celebrity crush when she had genuine feelings for Chat Noir…would she? Her feelings for Adrien have to be from her civilian life, don’t they?”

Alya bit her lip, worried she would give away too much with her answer. On second thought, so what if she blew Marinette’s cover? This stupid love quadrilateral they were stuck in had to go, and if Alya “accidentally” knocked it over like a house of cards, so what?

Gradually, Alya began to nod. “Yeah. You’re right, Cupcake. There’s no way Ladybug would pine after some celebrity crush for literal years. She probably does really know you.”

Adrien slowly released the breath from his lungs. “Okay. Wow. I mean…that’s what I thought, but…” He gulped. “Wow. You think she’s been right under my nose this whole time?”

Alya shrugged. “Maybe.”

Nino frowned as the pieces to the puzzle started to line up. “Wait.” He looked to Alya, eyes narrowing.

She arched an eyebrow.

Nino glanced back to Adrien. “Wait.”

Adrien tipped his head to the side interrogatively.

Nino looked to Alya once more, wearing an affronted expression. “If Ladybug is…” he sputtered, shaking his head. “What the hell is wrong with that girl?!”

Alya tried not to burst out laughing as she saw the true insanity of the situation register with her boyfriend.

Adrien, however, continued to look confused.

“Aw, come _on_ ,” Nino groaned in frustration, wishing he had hair to spare so that he could pull some out in his indignation. “I want to hit my head against a wall. Why on earth did she ask you out as Ladybug?” he demanded of his best friend.

“I’m…not sure?” Adrien replied uncertainly, feeling like he had missed something important.

“I swear I’m going to shake that girl,” Alya sighed.

Nino clicked his tongue. “Right?!”

“Maybe she didn’t think I’d say yes,” Adrien suggested, trying to ignore the fact that his friends seemed to be having some secret conversation in front of his face.

“Maybe.” Alya shrugged, too mentally exhausted to do more than that.

“I’m just worried that, if I do go out with Ladybug, we’re going to end up exposing our identities,” Adrien sighed, slumping back against the wall behind him.

“Would that really be the worst thing, though?” Nino posited.

Adrien wrinkled his brow as he considered it. “I don’t know. I don’t know if this is something that I can keep from her. Like you said, honesty is best in relationships. I don’t think I could be with her as Adrien and keep my Chat side a secret for long, but…she’s not going to be happy. The secret identities thing is a big deal for her.”

Alya gave an unconcerned snort. “Don’t you think she considered how it could put her identity at risk by getting close to you as Ladybug? She had to _know_ that this was a gamble. Apparently, the chance to date you was worth it. True, she’s going to be upset when you figure out who she is, but…she loves both sides of you, Adrien. She’s going to be really happy that the guys she loves are the same person.”

“Yeah,” Nino concurred, giving Adrien’s arm a bolstering pat. “You two will deal with the fallout when the time comes, so don’t worry about it too much. Just enjoy your date, and when the identity reveal comes, it comes. You guys have a strong partnership and love each other a lot. You’ll figure it out.”

Slowly, Adrien began to nod as he took their words to heart. “Yeah,” he breathed, gradually starting to feel at peace with the situation. “You’re right. I mean, I totally see where she’s coming from with wanting to keep our identities secret and wait until after Papillon is defeated for us to be a couple, but…whatever happens, we’ll make it work. Our bond is strong enough to overcome this.”

He looked up at his friends with eyes shining with gratitude. “Thanks, guys. I really appreciate you talking me through this. I couldn’t have done it without you.”

“Sure thing,” Nino chuckled, giving Adrien’s hair a fond ruffle.

Alya winked and punched Adrien’s arm playfully. “We’ve always got your back, Cupcake.”

The comfortable, warm atmosphere only lasted for a moment. Seconds later, Adrien’s eyes snapped open wide as he realized he’d forgotten about a key issue: “What am I going to say to Marinette when she asks me out?!”

Nino and Alya groaned in tandem.

Nino gave Adrien’s back a supportive pat as he shook his head. “Maybe don’t worry about that so much. I have a feeling it will sort itself out.”

“But…what if she asks me out and I have to tell her I’m marrying Ladybug?” Adrien looked back and forth between his friends as if this was a genuine and immediate concern he was having. “Won’t that ruin our friendship? Will it be awkward if I invite her to the wedding? Marinette is one of my best friends, and I don’t want to do anything to mess that up. She wasn’t seriously interested in me, was she?”

His eyes fell pleadingly on Alya.

She sighed and shook her head. “You know what? I’ll talk to her. You have absolutely nothing to worry about. Everything’s going to be fine.”

“Thank you so much, Alya!” he cried, lurching forward to throw his arms around her and nearly knocking her off the bed in the process. “You’re the best!”

She couldn’t help but laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation as she patted him on the back and shook her head. “Yeah, yeah. I know. You’re welcome, Adrien.”

“So,” Nino spoke up as Adrien and Alya pulled back. “Is that all the drama for the evening, or did you have something else we needed to hash out?”

“Nope,” Adrien assured. “I should be good.”

“Awesome,” Nino chuckled, stretching out on the bed and motioning for Adrien to lie down beside him.

Adrien readily complied and was summarily snuggled for his trouble.

“We were watching that new Netflix show [Lupin](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ga0iTWXCGa0),” Nino explained, resting his head on Adrien’s shoulder. “Ever seen it?”

“No, but I was planning on watching it,” Adrien replied excitedly.

“We’re only fifteen minutes into the first episode,” Alya informed, retrieving the laptop and waking it up. “If you want, we can start over and watch together.”

“Would that really be okay?” Adrien looked back and forth between them like an excited puppy.

“Absolutely,” Alya assured, cuddling up next to Adrien and restarting the video.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I had a lot of fun with Nino and Alya and Adrien's dynamic. What did you think?
> 
> I'm currently trying to finish Chapter Eleven. ^.^; It's massive. I'm pretty sure it's going to be a little over eight thousand words. -.-; I might have to up the chapter count to thirteen. I hope to finish the story over the weekend.
> 
> Anyway. From here on out, it's the Ladrien date, so I hope you'll look forward to that.
> 
> I'll see you again on Friday, 12/18/2020. Take care, Lovelies!
> 
> References:  
> Brahms Piano Concerto No. 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWoFaPwbzqE  
> Gruyère: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gruy%C3%A8re_cheese  
> Perfect Fifth: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfect_fifth  
> Lupin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ga0iTWXCGa0


	10. Rêve Bleu

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part one of the Ladrien date - Disney songs and travelling by yoyo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys. Sorry I'm a little later than usual. I'm having computer issues. We seem to be fine now, but... Anyway. How are you? Work has kind of been whacky the past two days. It's that time of the year when the client decides they want various information, so we're working on putting together reports for one hundred and twenty of our cases (usually they ask for info on all five hundred, so we seem to be getting off easy this time around). They originally wanted the reports in twenty-four hours with no overtime work, but we got them to walk it back to Wednesday. ^.^; I'm kind of glad they didn't approve overtime because that meant that I got to sleep last night instead of pulling an all-nighter and still not getting the project done. XD
> 
> Anyway. Today is the first chapter of the Ladrien date. I hope you enjoy it!

“Alyaaaa,” Marinette whined into the receiver the next morning. “I think I messed up.”

Alya blew out a snort, switching her phone to her other ear as she closed her laptop and carried it with her back into her bedroom. “Understatement of the year. I assume you’re talking about asking Adrien out?”

Marinette paused, taken aback by her best friend’s seeming clairvoyance. “Wait. How did you know?”

“Nino and Adrien just left my house, like, thirty minutes ago,” Alya informed, closing her door behind her and settling down onto her bed. “Girl, what were you thinking?” she asked nonjudgmentally. “Seriously. Talk me through it. I just want to understand what was going through your head.”

Marinette sighed, collapsing backwards down onto her chaise. “I don’t know, Alya. I was so convinced that he would say no if I asked him as Marinette. I mean, he’s never really treated me any nicer than anyone else, but…but you said he had a crush on Ladybug, and I thought, ‘Wait. _I’m_ Ladybug’, so… I messed up.”

“Yeah,” Alya affirmed gently, shaking her head and smiling sadly.

“And the worst part is he totally has a crush on Marinette,” the girl in question groaned in agony.

“Wait. What?” Alya pulled back to frown down at her phone before bringing it back up to her ear. “How did you finally come to that absolutely correct conclusion?”

“He told Ladybug!” Marinette whined in exasperation. “I gave him my Ladybug phone number, and I saw his favourite contacts list, and I was like, ‘Who’s ‘Princesse’?’, and he was like, ‘Oh, that’s my friend Marinette. You know Marinette?’, and then he went _off_ , Alya. He went off on this, like, doctoral dissertation on how amazing and wonderful I am.”

“I love when he does that,” Alya giggle-snorted, trying to contain a full-blown case of the giggles as she imagined the look on Ladybug’s face as Adrien waxed poetic about Marinette.

“Alya, I almost _died_ ,” Marinette asserted theatrically, as if she actually believed it. “He is the sweetest human being, and he says the most beautiful things. Like, the sounds that come out of his mouth are gorgeous.”

“I can’t tell you how vindicated I feel now that you know I was right all along when I told you he was sweet on you,” Alya chuckled smugly.

“Yeah, yeah. Rub it in,” Marinette grumbled, flipping over onto her stomach to bury her face in her throw pillow. “I just can’t believe how easily he told Ladybug he had this huge crush on me.”

“Marinette, he’ll tell anyone who will listen how great you are,” Alya sighed in amusement. “You should have listened to me.”

Marinette grunted and then whined. “I just wish I could have heard about his feelings for me as _me_ , though.”

“Well, you could have if you had just asked him out to coffee as you,” Alya chided without heat.

Marinette gave another pitiful moan for good measure. “I should have just asked him as Marinette. Now, yet again, I have made my life unnecessarily complicated. I really didn’t think this through.”

“Well, I mean, the way I see it, you’ve got a couple choices,” Alya began to innumerate. “First off, you could wait until he inevitably realizes your secret identity and then feels hurt and betrayed because you lied to him and used your superhero status to trick him into dating you. In the alternative, you could come clean and date him as Marinette. Lastly, you could cancel on him as Ladybug and ask him out as Marinette. I think those are the main options, so…what do you think you want to do?”

“Alya, I _can’t_ tell him my identity,” Marinette stressed, a hint of panic in her tone. “That would put him and me and all of Paris in danger! _No one_ can know who I am.”

Alya bit her tongue on the issue of _Alya_ knowing Marinette’s identity and how the world hadn’t stopped turning. “Okay. So, cancel on him.”

“Alya, I _can’t_ cancel on him,” Marinette groaned, rolling over onto her back once more. “He’s really looking forward to this. If I cancel without a good reason, it’ll break his heart, and he’ll get akumatized, and I _can’t_ fight Adrien, Alya. I just can’t, and then Papillon will win and Paris will be destroyed!”

Alya pursed her lips. “Okay. So…are we just going to lie to Adrien, then, and wait for him to figure things out and get hurt by your duplicity?”

Marinette winced. “You don’t take any prisoners, do you?”

“Nope,” Alya confirmed.

“Isn’t there an option where I can still date Adrien but not have to have my identity exposed?” Marinette haggled, as if Alya could magically make it be so.

Alya gave an indignant cluck, shaking her head. “ _I_ don’t think so, but…I mean, it’s your life, Marinette. You’re the one who has to make this choice and live with it. I’ll be there to support you if it blows up in your face, but…what do _you_ want to do?”

Marinette was silent for a long stretch as she analyzed her options and mulled over the decision. “…I think…I want to go on the date with Adrien as Ladybug,” she responded slowly, giving each word its due weight. “Just the one date, and then I’ll tell him that I don’t think it’s a good idea for him to date me as a masked superhero because that’s not really fair to him.”

Alya bit the inside of her cheek, doubting Marinette’s ability to stop after just the one date but letting her friend make her own choices. “Okay,” she agreed. “If that’s what you want, do that…. Do you want me to pump him for information on his ideal romantic date?”

“Oh my gosh. Yes, please!” Marinette laughed giddily, happily kicking her feet in the air now that the decision had been made and she could allow herself to actually look forward to her long-awaited first date with Adrien. “Could you really?”

“Yep,” Alya confirmed. “On it.”

With God as her witness, Alya was going to make sure that this date was everything Adrien and Marinette had ever dreamed it would be.

She wasn’t going to let a minor setback like Ladybug asking out Adrien get in the way of her master plan to make sure Marinette and Adrien got married.

Saturday morning found Adrien agonizing over his outfit for the day.

“Plagg,” he hissed in a panic, poking his head out of his walk-in closet. “I don’t have anything to wear! What am I going to do?!”

“Kid, she thought you were charming the other night when you were wearing pyjamas,” Plagg pointed out tiredly, having been subjected to this particular brand of nonsense all week. “Just…put clothes on. If you’re feeling especially fancy, put clothes on that match, but I’m telling you she won’t care.”

Adrien turned a disappointed pout on his kwami, sticking out his bottom lip. “Plaaaagg. Pleeeease? I really need your help.”

“Oh, fine,” Plagg sighed, switching off his soap opera and floating reluctantly in to survey the wardrobe situation. “What exactly is the problem here? You’ve got plenty of clothes.”

Adrien frowned at the two-tiered wall of clothing. “It’s called [choice paralysis](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analysis_paralysis). There are too many options, so I feel like I can’t possibly pick the right one.”

Plagg flew up to the top rack and grabbed a green argyle sweater with three-quarter length sleeves, dropping it on Adrien’s head. “Didn’t your girlfriend tell you that that one really brought out the green of your eyes?”

Adrien blinked, holding up the shirt to inspect it. “Uh…yeah. I think Marinette did tell me that.”

Plagg tossed down a white, collared shirt, instructing, “Put that on underneath and roll the sleeves into cuffs like you do with your usual overshirt. She likes that.”

“Oh. Um… Thanks,” Adrien replied haltingly, genuinely surprised that Plagg was being so helpful and offering real fashion advice. “Wow. That’s… I think this will actually look really good. Thank you, Plagg.”

Plagg gave an indignant snort. “Of course it will look good. I, for one, have been paying attention the past seven years, unlike a certain model I know. I trust you can pick out your own jeans?”

“Yeah, I should be able to manage,” Adrien chuckled, shooting his kwami a grateful smile. “Seriously. Thanks, Plagg. I’m kind of freaking out.”

“You’re welcome,” Plagg replied as he made his way back into the main room, calling over his shoulder, “Make sure you’re not wearing embarrassing boxers you wouldn’t want your date to see!”

“Oh my God, Plagg,” Adrien whined, his face, neck, and ears exploding in a heated scarlet blush. “Don’t be gross! It’s just a date. A _first_ date! We hardly know each other,” he protested. “At least…we’re not supposed to know we know each other.”

“Yeah, well…let’s just say I’m anticipating you two hitting it off,” Plagg snickered.

“Stop teasing me. Meanie,” Adrien grumbled petulantly, turning to his large assortment of jeans. 

He bit the inside of his cheek.

There were…a lot of jeans, and he wasn’t quite sure which would go better with the sweater. A dark wash? Light wash? Distressed? Ripped?

Adrien pursed his lips and furrowed his brow. “…Hey, Plagg?”

At one o’clock on the dot, Ladybug landed on his window ledge and gave the pane a perfunctory rap.

Adrien’s jaw dropped as he suddenly realized why she had called Chat Noir earlier in the week asking how he had made small modifications to his suit over the years.

In place of the iconic, spotted bodysuit, the girl at his window wore a [red, cowl-necked sweater dress](https://www.pinterest.com/pin/539024649129879202/) with black suede boots, black leggings, and a thin black belt resting on her hips. Her hair was pulled up in a messy chignon at the base of her neck, and instead of her usual mask she wore [oversized rose-coloured sunglasses](https://www.google.com/search?q=oversized+pink+sunglasses&rlz=1C1SQJL_enUS779US779&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjW2Nu0_MHtAhWaLs0KHRczAhoQ_AUoAnoECBAQBA&biw=1366&bih=625).

“Wow,” he greeted her as he opened the window. “You look great. I love what you’ve done with the suit.”

“Thank you,” she chuckled, stepping down into his room and tucking a stray bang back behind her ear. She smiled appreciatively as she took in his outfit. “As much as your pyjamas suited you the other night, I think I like this ensemble better. The sweater really brings out the green of your eyes.”

His cheeks quickly reddened to match her dress. “Oh, yeah? You think so?”

“Mmhm.” She nodded bashfully, smile shy yet sincere.

“Oh, good,” he chuckled, reaching up to rub at the back of his neck. “I was kind of stressing over what to wear. Don’t tell anyone, but I’ve got almost zero fashion sense.”

“I’m sure that’s not true.” She waved away his self-deprecating assertion.

In fact, she knew it wasn’t true because Adrien had often times given Marinette spot-on advice on her inchoate creations. But it wasn’t like she could tell him that because Ladybug had no way of knowing.

She was beginning to see the flaws in dating Adrien as her superhero alter ego.

“I’m completely serious,” he insisted, laughing at his own expense. “Typically, when I’m going to be leaving the house, my father’s personal assistant puts out pre-approved clothes for me. Today, I’m not officially scheduled to be anywhere, so I was on my own as far as getting dressed.”

“I’d say you did pretty well,” she praised.

“I cheated,” he admitted shamefacedly. “My friend Marinette told me this looked good on me, and she’s an aspiring fashion designer, so I trust her opinion implicitly.”

Ladybug, unexpectedly, looked away to the side and blushed at his proclamation of Marinette’s trustworthiness. “Well, I mean…it’s good that you have a friend you can trust with your wardrobe dilemmas like that.”

“Yeah,” he hummed warmly, “I’m lucky to have her.”

Ladybug was going to explode. Between him complimenting Ladybug and praising Marinette, she wasn’t going to last through the whole date.

“So, um… Well…you look very nice,” she managed, only sounding a little flustered. “Ready to go?”

“Absolutely!” he cheered enthusiastically, smile rivaling the natural light that flooded into his room through the windows in brightness.

She pursed her lips as a sliver of doubt seeped in. “You don’t think anyone will recognize me, do you? I mean…I wasn’t thinking very clearly when I asked you out. If Papillon thinks that we’re close, I could be putting you in danger.”

Adrien stopped bouncing excitedly in place and gave her an earnest once-over. His brow furrowed as he scrutinized her from all angles, his hand coming up to rest thoughtfully on his chin.

“…I honestly think we’re good,” he finally decided after much deliberation. “The only things that really scream ‘Ladybug’ about you are the earrings which are too small for passersby to notice and the yoyo, but that just looks like a ladybug-themed purse when it’s not in use. I think people will realize it’s you when they see us flying through the air on your yoyo, but once we get where we’re going, you can always set us down in an alley, and we can walk out surreptitiously. I think people are more apt to recognize _me_ than you when we’re on the street.”

“Okay, good,” she blew out in a sigh of relief with a shaky smile. “I’ve just kind of been freaking out because I’m a little scared I’m about to get you killed or kidnapped or tortured or something. Sometimes…” Her voice caught, and she swallowed and tried again. “Sometimes I’m a little scared of how far Papillon is willing to go.”

He reached out and rested a reassuring hand on her arm, giving her his best confidence-inducing smile. “Ladybug, don’t worry. Everything is going to be fine. I trust you…and I’m more capable than I look. Nothing bad is going to happen, so let’s just go out there and have fun getting to know one another, okay?” He turned up the wattage on his smile before pulling out and slipping on his own pair of black movie star sunglasses.

She nodded, smiling tentatively as she wrapped her arm around his waist, preparing for takeoff. “Okay. You’re right. Let’s…Let’s go have fun.”

“Where are we going first?” Adrien inquired as they crossed over to the Right Bank on the opposite side of the Seine, headed northeast via yoyo.

“Montmartre,” Ladybug informed with a mischievous smile. “I’ve got a surprise for you.”

His eyes lit up, and his grin spread even wider. “Really?”

She couldn’t help but chuckle fondly at his earnest excitement. “Yes, Silly. I mean, I know we kind of talked about date ideas via text—the definite ‘no’s and some things we would be interested in, but… Today is supposed to be one big surprise, so… Let’s just say that I have more than one trick up my sleeve.”

“I can’t wait,” he chuckled, heart overflowing with joy.

He’d dreamed of this day for so long, it was hard to believe it was actually happening. Ladybug really had come up with a romantic surprise date all for him.

Suddenly, Ladybug’s swing reached its apex, and she pulled her yoyo loose from its anchor, throwing it once more to carry them forward.

Just for a second before the yoyo latched onto its next mooring place, they were freefalling, and the drop made Adrien’s stomach flutter.

He couldn’t keep in a giddy laugh. He wanted to whoop and scream like on a rollercoaster, but he somehow didn’t think that would be appropriate.

“You doing okay?” Ladybug inquired, giving him a concerned sideways glance, trying to watch where she was going and monitor him at the same time.

“Never better,” he answered, and it wasn’t even that much of an exaggeration. “This is exhilarating! Sorry. It’s just…maybe the ride is smoother in your super suit, but I feel like I’m on a thrill ride.”

“Oh. Yeah,” she chuckled, blushing slightly as she remembered the times when Chat Noir had carried Marinette. The experience was a good deal bumpier without the suit to absorb the impacts.

“Do you like thrill rides?” she wondered, mentally crossing her fingers. “I’m sorry. I’ll try to make the transitions less jarring, but—”

“—No, no,” he hurriedly assured, still laughing. “This is wonderful. I _love_ this.”

“Oh, yeah? Good.” She smiled, an impish glint in her eye as she threw her yoyo harder, latching onto one of the thirty-story hotel buildings that had been built before the law banning buildings from being more than six stories inside of the ring road.

She launched them high into the air and then let them drop into a dizzying spiral.

She held Adrien tighter as he laughed his head off, screaming, “Woohoo!!!” like he was having the time of his life.

“You okay?” she chuckled as they came out of the fall and back into a regular swing.

“Do that again!” he begged. “Please do that again!”

“As my Prince commands,” she readily acquiesced, propelling them up and then letting them fall as he screamed in elation as the adrenaline made his heart beat faster.

“Sorry. I’m screaming in your ear, aren’t I?” he realized too late as they returned to her normal swinging pattern. “I’m really sorry,” he repeated guiltily. “I wasn’t thinking.”

“Oh, no worries!” she assured. “The suit protects my hearing. Besides, you have a lovely scream.”

“No one…has ever told me that before,” he spluttered, trying to keep from bursting out laughing.

“Glad I could be the first,” she replied through a grimace, internally cringing at the stupid things that perpetually escaped her lips.

“You should hear my singing voice,” he teased, giving her a wink that nearly did her in.

“Oh? Do you sing well?” she hummed in interest, glad that he hadn’t called her out for being a total weirdo.

“Very,” he replied with confidence. “Do you sing, Ladybug?”

“Not particularly well,” she admitted with a pained smile. “I mean, I sing okay as a part of a chorus or as a backup singer, but I don’t think I’m particularly good at singing solo parts.”

“Oh, I’m sure you’re lovely,” he insisted, his kind eyes full of confidence in her.

He couldn’t say, “I hear you hum and sing to yourself sometimes when we’re on patrol”, but he knew she had a sweet voice when she didn’t think anyone else was listening.

“We could sing something together, if you like?” he suggested.

Ladybug mentally froze, trying to remember if Adrien had ever heard Marinette sing and deliberating whether he would be able to recognize her voice. Was that something he’d paid attention to?

“You mean…like a duet?” she asked cautiously.

“Mmhm. Just for fun,” he encouraged. “I would never make fun of you, and no one else is listening, so…how about it?”

She pursed her lips and debated whether she really wanted to embarrass herself in front of her crush.

On second thought, she always embarrassed herself in front of him, so that wouldn’t really be anything new.

He seemed in earnest, though, and he obviously wanted to sing with her, and the point of this outing was to take Adrien on a romantic date straight out of a fairytale, so…

“Okay. If it would make you happy, I’ll sing a duet with you, but I was completely serious when I said I wasn’t that good. I’m not just being modest,” she warned. “So…what would you like to sing?”

A faint blush spread across his cheeks as he tentatively broached the subject, “Well, I can think of one song in particular that would be appropriate for the situation. Do you know [Ce Rêve Bleu](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGyS2-rZsC0) from Disney’s Aladdin?”

She had to think about it for a minute. “Um…yeah. I think I know most of the lyrics at least. I’m sure you can help if I get stuck.”

“But of course,” he assured with a charming smirk. “I’ve always got your back, My Lady.”

Her entire face turned as pink as the tint of her sunglasses, and her heart skipped a beat.

It should have felt wrong for Adrien to call her by Chat Noir’s special nickname, but…somehow it didn’t. In the back of her mind, she chided herself for her betrayal.

She forced herself to breathe and smiled kindly as she gently informed, “That’s actually what Chat Noir calls me, so we probably need to find a unique nickname that only you are allowed to use.”

“O-Oh!” he stuttered, mentally kicking himself for slipping up less than half an hour into the outing. There was no way his identity was going to survive intact through the date if he kept going at this rate. “Sorry. Right. I knew that. I’ve heard him say that during interviews,” Adrien covered smoothly.

“No worries,” she insisted, giving him a little squeeze of reassurance. “I would just prefer for you to call me something only you call me.”

“Right.” He wracked his brains for something he hadn’t already used as Chat Noir. “How about…Nelle? As in ‘coccinelle’?” He bit his lip, brow furrowing. “That’s not very original, is it?”

“No, it’s fine,” she assured with a musical chuckle, adoring being able to see his facial expressions this close. He was absolutely adorable, and she love, love, _loved_ how expressive his eyebrows were. She could watch them dance through emotions for hours. “I mean, Chat Noir calls me ‘Buguinette’ sometimes, so they’re on a similar level. Besides, ‘Nelle’ is kind of cute.”

Adrien’s frown deepened as he began to worry. “Is ‘Buguinette’ not cute?”

“Don’t you dare tell a soul,” she replied in a semi-threatening tone. “I’m swearing you to secrecy on this, you understand?”

He nodded, not sure if she was joking or if she really planned to kill him if he let whatever she was about to tell him slip. “Mmhm. Of course.”

She burst out laughing. “I actually love it.”

His heart swelled with pride and joy and vindication for all those years she had denied it left and right. He _knew_ she secretly loved it.

“At first I wanted to throttle him because I thought he was goofing off too much while we were supposed to be working, but…” She shook her head, a warm, affectionate smile clinging to her lips. “It’s really grown on me.” She looked back to him with a deadly serious expression. “Don’t you dare tell Chat Noir. I will never live it down if you do.”

“If I had a free hand, I’d raise it and take an oath,” he swore. “I promise Chat Noir won’t hear it from me.”

Because he’d technically heard it from _her_ but…

“Good,” she decreed, sounding satisfied. “So…singing?”

“Singing!” he agreed enthusiastically.

“…Do you want to start?” she inquired when a few seconds passed and no singing occurred.

“No, you sing Aladdin’s part,” he encouraged. “I’m obviously Jasmine.”

She blinked, wondering how he was going to sing the higher part. It actually worked out better for her because her voice got a little shrill and crack-y when she reached for the higher notes, but…

“You know. Like how she’s trapped inside her empty, lonely palace because her father is misguidedly trying to protect her, and her only friend is a cat?” Adrien explained, misinterpreting Ladybug’s silence. “And you’re the daring adventurer who’s come to rescue me from my boredom and isolation and show me a whole new world?”

“Oh,” she responded, coming back into the present moment. “Okay. Yeah. That makes sense.” She paused, mentally rewinding the tape. “Wait. Do you have a cat?”

Adrien pressed his lips together and tried not to smile at the irony. He only succeeded in looking extremely guilty. “…No.”

She quirked an eyebrow at him, a puckish smile curling up the corners of her lips. “Adrien Agreste, are you hiding a stray cat in your room?”

“I can neither confirm nor deny your accusation,” he answered with an incriminating grin.

“Mmhm,” she snickered. “Well, you’ll have to introduce me to him—her?—one of these days.”

“Him,” he confirmed, giving her a soft smile. “And yeah. I think that’s probably a good idea. Maybe not today, but…yeah. Soon,” he promised, knowing in his heart that it was hopeless to fight the inevitable.

If she didn’t figure him out, he was bound to crack under the guilt of keeping secrets and the frustration of her not seeing her partner standing right in front of her when she was with Adrien.

“So…” he gently guided them back on track. “…singing?”

“Singing,” she affirmed and then shot him a sideways look that informed him that she meant business. “No making fun of me.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” he swore solemnly.

And then she began to sing. Her voice was tentative at first, but she slowly gained confidence as Adrien grinned at her like she had personally created the oxygen supporting life on planet Earth.

She sang a little more assertively, her notes syrupy and sweet as the deeper melody line brought out a richness in her voice.

She fumbled some of the lines and started to lose her nerve, but Adrien gave her a supportive squeeze and began to whisper-sing along with her until it was time for Jasmine’s part to come in.

And then he belted the lines he had clearly memorized long, long ago.

Ladybug stared at him in amazement as his voice soared, the words so clear and crisp. He didn’t need to drop it down an octave either, and she found herself a little jealous that he could sing higher than she could without sounding like he was straining at all. His notes resounded, playful and bell-like, making her almost forget to pay attention to where she was headed with her yoyo.

Adrien Agreste could _sing_.

And, oh, how she wished she were recording this. She could listen to his voice for an eternity.

That was it. They were having Disney movie singalong night. It had to happen. Either as Ladybug or Marinette, she was going to find a way to get him to sing for her again because now that she knew what his singing voice sounded like, there was no way she could survive without it. She wanted him as her ringtone.

She mentally hit the pause button to wonder if she were acting too stalkerish again.

It was in that moment that she realized she hadn’t been singing Aladdin’s descant to Jasmine’s lines.

Adrien didn’t seem to mind, though. His voice gracefully glided over the notes as he looked yet again like he had never had more fun in his life.

She smiled as she joined back in, singing soft and low, trying to mesh her voice with his.

Serendipitously, they sounded pretty good together, and she found herself relaxing and just enjoying the way their notes melded lusciously into a cohesive whole.

In that moment, being with him felt so right, and all of her fears of rejection and humiliation and making him feel bad and ruining their friendship left her.

As she set him down on the slightly sloped roof at the base of the white domes of [Sacré-Coeur](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacr%C3%A9-C%C5%93ur,_Paris), she finally felt at peace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, how was that? How do you think I did with their dynamic this time? Somehow it was a little easier just with Ladybug not wearing her usual suit. ^.^; I have no idea why that matter, but it seems to have. What did you think of the outfits I picked for their date? I think Adrien could definitely pull off argyle. And I love sweater dresses! They're super comfy and fun, but they still look cute.
> 
> Did you have a favourite part? A favourite line? I hope you enjoyed the chapter.
> 
> Confession: If I remember correctly, the tall hotel buildings are actually on the Left Bank south of the Eiffel Tower, kind of around the Pont de Grenelle area. So, that’s actually south of where I headcanon the Agreste Mansion to be, and, therefore, my description of the route they take isn't completely accurate. Ahem. Creative license? ^.^
> 
> Translation note: “Coccinelle” is French for ladybird.
> 
> Well, I finished Chapter Eleven, and it is nine thousand words long. ^.^; Sorry. They just kept talking. I'm working on Chapter Twelve now, and I hope to finish it over the weekend. I should know on Tuesday when I next update whether I'll be able to update next Friday and whether I'll be adding a Chapter Thirteen. I hope to be productive this weekend. ^.^;
> 
> I'll see you all again on Tuesday, 12/22/2020. Take care everyone! Have a lovely weekend!
> 
> References:  
> Choice/Decision/Analysis Paralysis: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analysis_paralysis  
> Sweater Dress: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/539024649129879202/  
> Ce Rêve Bleu/A Whole New World: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGyS2-rZsC0  
> Sacré-Coeur: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacr%C3%A9-C%C5%93ur,_Paris


	11. Honest Conversations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ladybug and Adrien talk. A LOT.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! I hope you're doing well. This week isn't so great for me. -.-; I'm trying to hang in there. Thanks for joining me for yet another installment, and thank you very much for everyone supporting this work by commenting, leaving kudos, and bookmarking the story. I appreciate you all so much, and I'm really happy that you're enjoying the story.
> 
> This chapter is a continuation of the Ladrien date. It's a little more serious than the rest of the story, but I hope you'll enjoy it anyway.

“Wow,” Adrien breathed as he looked down at Paris stretching out before him from the top of the Sacré-Coeur Basilica.

While it was true that the Eiffel Tower was taller, from the top of _that_ monument, the city seemed to spread out on all sides in an endless web. From the roof of the church on top of the hill, Paris spilled forth like a waterfall or the train of a wedding gown, perfect and beautiful like a carpet of blue and white flowers.

“It’s gorgeous up here.” He suddenly realized that he’d never seen this view before. Not really. Not like this.

He’d been to Montmartre for akuma attacks in the past, but he’d only been there for the fight, and he’d had to hurry back to whatever photoshoot or class or other obligation he’d left behind.

He’d never stopped to really see what his city looked like from this vantage point, so staring at it now with his Lady still with her arm partially around him, not having yet stepped back after setting him down… It took his breath away.

“Yeah,” she whispered reverently, savoring the moment.

They stood there together for a long stretch, transfixed, until it occurred to Ladybug that she still had her arm wrapped around his waist despite the fact that there was no longer any need.

She cleared her throat and smiled bashfully as she slipped away. “You…um…you have a beautiful singing voice.”

He returned the smile, rubbing at the back of his neck, embarrassed and pleased at her praise. “You think so? Thank you. I’ve been singing for a long time. Since I was a child,” he added for context. “My mother was a stage actor. She did musicals often, and, for a few years, she got it into her head that she wanted to be an opera singer. She got a vocal coach,” he chuckled fondly at the memory. “I used to hide in the music room and spy on her lessons. Then, I’d sing along with her when she practiced. I grew up singing [Bellini](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vincenzo_Bellini) and [Rossini](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gioachino_Rossini) and [Puccini](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giacomo_Puccini).”

Suddenly, he realized he was monopolizing the conversation and immediately sought to rectify the situation. “Sorry. I’m rambling. I like singing. I’m glad you think I’m good at it. You have a really pretty voice too.”

She blushed, waving away his compliment as she went to retrieve the wicker picnic basket from where she had stowed it earlier at the seam where the slightly slanted roof met the base of the tower supporting one of Sacré-Coeur’s iconic, turnip-like domes.

“I’m just glad I didn’t make your ears bleed,” she snickered self-deprecatingly. “Like I said, I’m not a good solo singer.”

“I don’t know,” he hummed skeptically. “ _I_ like your voice, Nelle. Will you at least agree that we make beautiful music together?”

She had to try not to laugh as he waggled his eyebrows at her. “Okay,” she relented. “Yes. The duet was actually really nice. I liked that.”

“We’ll have to do it again sometime?” he replied hopefully, but it sounded more like a question, as if he were unsure whether lightning would strike the same place twice and he’d get another date with her.

She had gone into this with the intention of this being a one-time thing, but…he was looking at her so hopefully, and she couldn’t bear to break his heart.

“Of course,” she promised, setting down the picnic basket and spreading out the blanket. “One way or another, we’ll get together and sing more Disney songs. This was fun,” she assured, not certain if that would be with Ladybug, but she would definitely follow up with him as Marinette, if not.

“Oh, good,” he chuckled giddily in relief, rushing to help her smooth out the blanket. “I think I tried to warn you that I was a dork, but I’m not sure you truly got the full picture. I was a little afraid I’d scared you off.”

“Not at all!” she insisted, taking a seat and beginning to unpack all of the goodies she’d packaged up in Tom and Sabine’s takeaway boxes earlier that afternoon. “I’m having fun with you.”

“Good,” he reiterated, the dread and worry beginning to fade.

“And I liked hearing about your mom before,” she added, stopping to look up and meet his gaze. “Seriously. You weren’t rambling. I…I want to get to know you better, Adrien, so…I’m happy when you share things like that with me.”

The sincerity of her smile nearly made him forget how to breath.

“Oh.” A grin slowly spread across his lips, making his face shine in joy. “Thanks. I’m really glad.”

“You’re very welcome,” she assured, blushing down at the pastry boxes. She got out the tiered serving tray and started to open up the boxes and arrange the miniature blackcurrant scones, golden raisin scones, strawberry jam, and clotted cream on the bottom tier.

“Wow,” Adrien breathed in wonder, eyes widening as Ladybug unpacked an assortment of mini tarts, trifles, petit fours, and macarons for the top tier. “This spread is amazing, and I can tell you have good taste. Tom and Sabine are the best in the business.”

“Well, Marinette actually made all this,” she confessed, taking out a variety of finger sandwiches (egg salad, tuna salad, smoked salmon, and cucumber) and placing them carefully on the second tier of the tray. “But she learned from the best, so the quality should still be passable.”

Adrien’s eyes went even wider. “ _Marinette_ made all this?”

Ladybug’s blush flared up as she nodded. “Yep. I actually know her, so…”

“Wow,” Adrien reiterated, taking in the array of items with renewed appreciation. “She’s so unbelievably talented!”

He was going to give her a heart attack if he started gushing about her civilian self again.

“Look at how neatly she’s cut off the crusts! And the way she’s placed the berries on this tart just so…” He shook his head, blown away by Marinette’s many skills. “She’s just so incredible. I can’t believe she does so many things so well, you know? She’s amazing at everything she sets her mind to.”

Then he looked at her with the most earnest smile, and she was a goner.

“She’s…something all right,” she laughed nervously, trying to remember how to breathe through her nose.

Adrien frowned, picking up on her unease. “I’m really sorry. It’s kind of weird that I’m talking about another girl on our date, isn’t it?”

“No, no!” she rushed to assure him, waving her hands in a flurry and almost knocking over the tiered tray. “It’s okay. No worries. I mean, I’m the one who brought her up. I’m sure she’d be really happy to know you thought so highly of her.”

“I hope so,” he chuckled, reaching up to rub at the back of his neck. “We’re pretty close, since we’ve been friends for years, but I’m a little socially awkward, so I worry sometimes that I’m a little _too_ effusive. I’m sure it’s kind of annoying to listen to me rant about her all the time.”

“I would never get tired of you ranting like that about me,” Ladybug insisted, sounding almost breathless.

He blinked and then grinned. “Oh. Good. Duly noted…. Because you’re sort of phenomenal. Like, has anyone ever told you that you’re radiant when you’re solving one of your Lucky Charms? And your laugh is endearing.”

“Oh,” she responded in a daze, unprepared to find herself in his crosshairs.

“Your smile? Killer,” he praised. “And that’s just you physically. Don’t get me started on how noble and brave and clever and funny you are.”

“I’ll be sure not to because I think I’d overheat and pass out if you did,” she laughed, only partially kidding.

“Well, we wouldn’t want that,” he snickered impishly. “I’ll be sure to save some compliments for later, then. Sound good?”

She nodded, turning back to the food. “So…afternoon tea.” She carefully got out the plates, saucers, and cups, making sure they sat still on the inclined roof before retrieving the thermos of mint tea from the wicker picnic basket. “Marinette happened to mention that you’re something of a [pescatarian](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pescetarianism), so I hope the sandwich varieties are to your liking.”

He gave a bit of a start. “You and Marinette talked about me?”

“Just a little,” she rushed to assure, hands going up in defence. “Nothing, like, too weird or anything. Nothing especially personal. I didn’t pump your friends for information about you or anything, but when I was placing the order with Marinette, I just happened to ask her if she knew if you had any preferences, so…”

“No, it’s okay,” he assured. “You were being thoughtful, and I really appreciate that.”

He attempted to fight the sinking feeling caused by Marinette knowing that he was on a date with Ladybug. She certainly wasn’t going to be inviting him out for a coffee date now, and that realization disappointed him. He felt like he was missing out…even thought that was ridiculous because he’d been dreaming of a date with Ladybug for years, and, now, here he was literally living a long-standing dream, but…

“I actually do eat meat,” he informed her with a smile, forcing himself to get out of his own thoughts and back into the present moment where he was having a lovely rooftop picnic with Ladybug. “If it’s set in front of me, anyway. I don’t particularly like it, and I wouldn’t choose it of my own volition if there were other things to pick, but…thank you. I really do appreciate you being so thoughtful. It was really nice of Marinette to come up with so many different pescatarian-friendly options.”

“She knows you don’t really get to make decisions a lot, so she wanted you to have a selection,” Ladybug replied, not sure why she was putting in a good word for her apparent “love rival”.

“Aww,” Adrien cooed. “That was so sweet of her. I don’t know what I did to deserve such wonderful, caring women in my life.”

“You’re pretty wonderful yourself,” she added bashfully, making him blush as a pleased smile slowly spread across his lips.

“Thank you for thinking so,” he hummed happily, drinking in the perfection of the moment.

“Of course.” She returned his grin.

“…So.” He cleared his throat. “What kind of tea are we drinking?”

“Mint,” she replied and then watched his face closely for a reaction, trying not to appear to be doing so. “I know it doesn’t exactly go with the rest of the menu items, but Marinette mentioned that it was a favourite of yours, so…”

“Yeah,” he breathed, trying to keep in the broad, beaming smile that was trying to rip his face in half with its force and radiance. “It’s… My mom used to make mint tea for us when we had a bad day. It’s a comfort food for me.”

“Ooooh,” Ladybug sang over three pitches, eyes widening as she pretended that this was news to her. “Well, that makes sense why Marinette suggested it, then.” Cautiously, she poured them each a cup.

“Marinette is a pretty good wingman,” Adrien observed, appreciating how well his friend knew him.

“She’s doing pretty well so far,” Ladybug chuckled, handing him one of the small dessert plates. “Go ahead and dig in. Don’t hold back on my account.”

“If you insist,” he replied politely, needing no further urging as he took a cucumber sandwich and a blackcurrant scone to start with.

Ladybug helped herself to one of the petit fours, a raspberry and custard mini tart, and one of the golden raisin scones. “So…do you mind me asking why you’re not such a big fan of meat? Is it the texture?” she inquired.

Marinette already knew the story, but she knew it was a good way to get Adrien talking.

“My mom was kind of one of those crazy vegetarians,” Adrien chuckled sheepishly, a fond expression settling onto his face. “Not that there’s anything wrong with being passionate about animal rights or anything. It _is_ important, but my mom was a little extreme,” he explained, lest Ladybug think ill of him. “Like, she’d always try to get my father to stop eating meat by making tortured mooing sounds while he ate steak or by describing in gross detail all the bad things that the people raising the animals did to them and how they slaughtered them.”

Ladybug winced even though she’d heard the story before because she knew how Émilie had inadvertently traumatized Adrien as a child. “I bet that made for…um…an unpleasant dining experience.”

Adrien shrugged, looking down at his plate. “My father thought it was amusing, actually. He made a big show of enjoying his meal because he knew it drove her nuts.” Adrien’s fond smile shifted into a bit of a grimace. “I was kind of freaked out, though. For the longest time, I thought that the animals could still feel pain after they were dead, so I always used to cry when I was served meat.”

Until his father had severely punished him and let him know that that was not acceptable behavior, Adrien had confessed to Marinette several years before.

Adrien reinforced his grin and chuckled lighthearted, trying to keep up a jovial mood. “I got over that phase, but since I had such negative associations with meat as a child, I never really developed a taste for it. I’ll eat it if it’s put in front of me, but I’d rather eat other things.”

“But you eat fish and seafood?” she asked in seemingly earnest interest as she nibbled on her petit four. She always loved his next line.

“Well, yeah,” Adrien chuckled genuinely this time. “Shrimp and lobster and clams and snails all taste delicious in butter. My mom always used to say, ‘Fish don’t count. They swim’.”

Ladybug put a hand over her mouth as she laughed. “Did she eat seafood often?”

Adrien shook his head. “No. No, she didn’t, but I think she felt so bad about causing me to have an existential crisis over eating meat that she was trying to make me feel better.”

Ladybug nodded, smiling warmly. “That was nice of her. Didn’t you get confused, though? I mean, other things swim besides fish.”

He giggle-snorted. “I did. I was very, very confused, so I just went with whatever my parents told me to eat. Is it any wonder dessert ended up being my favourite part of the meal? There’s nothing complicated about cake.”

“Amen to that,” Ladybug snickered, popping the mini raspberry tart into her mouth. “…Talk more about your mom. I mean, only if you want,” she hastily amended. “It’s just…it sounds like you have a lot of happy memories with her, and I was thinking that maybe…maybe you don’t get to talk about her a lot.”

She bit her lip, smiling tentatively, hoping she hadn’t miscalculated. She remembered him saying something to that effect to Marinette at some point.

“You don’t mind?” he inquired warily, wondering if she was just trying to be nice but wasn’t actually interested.

Most people couldn’t deal with all the baggage he had surrounding his mother, their complicated relationship, and her disappearance. He didn’t want to dump too much on Ladybug too soon right when they were just getting to know one another.

“I really want to know,” she insisted, leaning back and supporting her weight with one hand propped behind her. “I like hearing you talk.”

“Okay,” he agreed cautiously, taking a bite of his cucumber sandwich as he mentally fished for a suitable topic concerning his mother. “…I mentioned she was a stage actor. I used to spend a lot of time backstage with her. I got to see a lot of rehearsals and performances from behind the scenes.”

“Oooh, I bet that was really neat,” she cooed, watching as his eyebrows danced in excitement.

“It was!” he affirmed enthusiastically. “The theatre has always been a really magical place for me. I loved seeing how everything came together, how all the sets slowly coalesced into enchanted castles or Victorian sitting rooms or undersea grottos. How props were made and how costumes and lighting were designed. I always felt at home backstage,” he confessed wistfully.

“You sound like you miss it,” she noted quietly.

He nodded, his smile turning sad. “She disappeared seven years ago, and my father hasn’t really wanted anything to do with the theatre since then. It reminds him too much of her.”

“I’m sorry,” Ladybug offered helplessly, wishing she could soften his pain.

Adrien shrugged and tried to force his lips back into a neutral smile. “It is what it is. I mean, I’ve seen plays and musicals and operas since then, but…it’s not really the same as being on the other side of the curtain. I think the closest I’ve come is doing some voice acting. That’s similar in some ways, but…you know. Not really…. I actually did some acting myself when I was younger.”

She leaned back in, resting her elbows on her knees as she focused her attention on him. “Oh, yeah? I didn’t know that.”

She’d seen him participate in Nino’s movie projects and some school plays, but his father had never allowed him more than a bit part because his modeling and extracurricular activities schedule was already so full.

He nodded, enthusiasm slowly coming back. “My first role was when I was a baby and my mom was staring in [A Streetcar Named Desire](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Streetcar_Named_Desire). I’ve been in a lot of shows with my mom. Some on my own too, but…nothing recently.” He gave a little sigh of discontentment.

“Have you ever thought about taking it up again?” she timidly pressed.

He paused, considering, surprised at her suggestion. “I hadn’t…actually thought of that. I mean…acting was something I really loved, so…”

His eyebrows slid together into a frown. “…My father would never let me, though. It’s too much Maman’s thing. It could never be mine. He wouldn’t like it.”

“No disrespect, but you’re legally an adult. And it’s _your_ life, Adrien, not your father’s, so I don’t actually think he gets a say in whether you try out for some community theatre show or take an acting class next semester,” Ladybug replied, trying to keep the heat and annoyance she felt for Gabriel Agreste out of her voice.

Adrien blinked, staring at her for a good ten seconds before reacting with an “Oh” of enlightenment. “Yeah. I…You’re right. I could totally do that.”

“And you should,” she encouraged with a wide smile. “If that’s something you decide you want to do, I mean. Never let other people dictate how you live your life, Adrien. You should do what makes _you_ happy first and foremost. So long as you’re not hurting anyone, you should just do whatever you want.”

He hummed thoughtfully as he finished off his cucumber finger sandwich and reached for another one. “…I think you’re onto something, Nelle. Acting used to be really important to me, and I even dreamed about doing it professionally when I was little, just like Maman. I think I’d like to give it a try again. At the very least, maybe it will help me reconnect with some of my memories of her. I know it can never be like how it was when we were onstage together, but…I’m sure it will still be a meaningful experience.”

“Definitely!” She nodded enthusiastically. “I hope so, anyway. It sounds like you and your mom were really close, so it would be great if you found a way to tap into something you used to share together again. Kind of like how you two used to make mint tea and salads when you were having a bad day.”

Adrien opened his mouth to reply but then stopped as his brain caught up with what she had said.

An impish grin unfurled across his lips. “I never told you about making _salads_ with my mom.”

Ladybug’s eyes went wide in a panic at her slipup. “Yes, you did.”

He shook his head slowly, smirk growing larger. “No. I only told you about the mint tea. _Marinette_ told you about the salads…. You _did_ pump my friend for information about me, didn’t you, Nelle? Admit it,” he chuckled, having way too much fun with this.

“Just a little bit!” she protested, fiddling with her pink sunglasses as her entire face started to burn. “Marinette was the one who just went off gushing about you completely unsolicited!”

She should have been concerned with how easy it was to throw herself under the bus, but, in that moment, she was more than happy to make this Marinette’s problem so that Ladybug didn’t have to deal with it.

“She did?” Adrien asked breathlessly, as if in awe at the very thought of Marinette Dupain-Cheng gushing about him.

Ladybug froze. “Um…yeah. I mean… To be fair, she just wanted you to have a really nice date, so…so she told me some things she thought would help.”

A faint blush spread across the bridge of Adrien’s nose, and his smug grin morphed into a warm smile, touched by Marinette’s thoughtfulness. “That was really sweet of her,” he mumbled almost to himself. “She’s such a wonderful friend.”

Ladybug averted her eyes so as not to overheat and die from an overdose of Adrien’s adorableness.

“Yeah,” she chuckled nervously. “Marinette’s great.”

“Sorry,” Adrien groaned, catching himself. “We’re going to have to have some kind of rule about how we’re not allowed to talk about Marinette or something because it’s really hard for me not to rant about how awesome she is whenever someone brings her up. I’m sorry my crush on her is so obnoxious,” he apologized with a wince.

“No, it’s fine. Really,” she insisted, feeling bad for making him feel guilty. “I get it. It’s not a problem. I think it’s really sweet, actually.”

“Oh, good,” he laughed, giving the back of his neck a rub. “Because I know I’m kind of breaking one of the top five rules of dating by talking about another girl, but…”

He shook his head and looked out at the city, taking in the view. “…Anyway…. You wanted to hear more about my mom?”

“Mmhm,” she encouraged softly, starting on her scone.

“I was really close to her,” he added with a fond sort of melancholy. “Over the years, I’ve started to realize that she was far from perfect. She didn’t always get it right, but she tried really hard, and I knew she loved me, so…”

Ladybug nodded, commiserating. “My parents don’t always get it right either, but knowing that they love me no matter what is a big deal. It makes it easier to forgive them when they slip up and easier to ask for forgiveness when I’m the one in the wrong.”

Adrien hummed softly, mentally conjuring up an image of Ladybug’s parents, not for the first time. He’d always imagined them as fun and loving and energetic and encouraging. He’d always imagined them a little bit like Tom and Sabine. The anecdotes Ladybug had shared with Chat Noir reminded him of the Dupain-Chengs and his experiences with them as both Chat and Adrien.

“I still have a lot that I can’t really forgive my parents for,” Adrien whispered sadly, remembering the times when his mother had taken out her stress and mental health issues on him and the times when his father had been cold and distant when Adrien needed his love and support the most.

“I’m sorry,” Ladybug mumbled, regretting her part in summoning that rueful smile to Adrien’s lips.

He shook his head, and his grin went back to a careful neutral. “It’s okay. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

“You didn’t,” she assured. “I just feel bad for making you sad and…I don’t know…rubbing my family situation in your face? I didn’t mean to do that. I mean—”

“—No worries,” he cut her off before she could spiral further into guilt and awkwardness. “It’s…yeah.” He blew out a sigh as he tried to think of the best way to explain it. “It’s fine for you to talk about your family. It’s okay that you’re happy and that you have a good relationship with them. It’s _great_ even. I’m actually really happy for you.”

“Oh,” she replied, her defences starting to come down. “I’m not making you feel bad or anything?”

He shook his head again. “What really makes me feel bad is making other people feel bad or awkward or whatever,” he confessed. “I know my father isn’t the best sometimes, and I know my mother either got murdered or abandoned me or something, so I _know_ my homelife is really messed up, but…there were good times too. I had happy moments with my family, so… It’s okay.”

He caught her gaze and held it, his eyes completely earnest. “The best thing you can do is treat me like I’m like anyone else. Pretend I’m ‘normal’.” He put the word in air quotes and snickered, lightheartedly rolling his eyes. “Whatever that’s supposed to mean, you know? Just pretend I’m normal, and don’t feel like you have to walk on eggshells around me.”

She slowly began to nod. “Okay. All right. Thank you. I think I can do that.”

“Good,” he sighed in relief, looking back down at his plate. “And I apologize in advance if I say something that makes you uncomfortable. Like I said, I know my family is messed up, but it’s kind of what I’m used to, so…sometimes I just want to talk about things and not have people freak out on me. So…if I ever say something and you think, ‘Wow. His father is a real jerk’, I already know that, but…it’s my reality, so if you could just pretend I’m normal and not bring up things like ‘abuse’ and ‘neglect’, that would be really great.”

He looked back up at her with a sheepish smile. “Sorry. I don’t know if that made any sense, but I’m just kind of sensitive about it.”

“No, it did,” she assured, reaching out to rest a hand on his arm as she gave him a bolstering smile. “I get it. Sometimes you just want to talk about your experiences without having to worry about the other person thinking about you differently or treating you like you’re a freak. I get that from years of being Ladybug and not having anyone but Chat Noir and my kwami Tikki to process that with, so…I’ll do my best,” she promised. “I’d like to be a safe space for you so that you can just talk and vent without having to worry.”

He rested his hand on top of hers, relishing the skin-on-skin contact their suits had always deprived them of.

“Thank you,” he stressed sincerely. “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you just trying. Not a lot of people even get what I’m talking about most of the time, so… Thanks.”

The warm gratitude contained in his smile made her heart feel like it was about to burst. “You’re very welcome.”

“So,” he chuckled softly, returning to the food as he released her hand and she pulled back. “Um…I’ve always admired my mother. She dealt with a lot with my father’s career. She never wanted to be a society wife, and I know what it’s like for _me_ to have to go out there with my public persona and deal with the media and everyone’s opinion of me, so I know it’s tough. I know it must have been tough for her. She struggled a lot with mental health too, so it was really hard for her at times, but she always gave her acting her all. She loved it,” he informed with a fond smile. “She was always so passionate about her job, and I wanted that for myself. I wanted to do something that I could really throw myself into and derive a sense of satisfaction from.”

“You don’t feel that way about modeling, do you?” Ladybug remarked sadly.

As much as Marinette had always been a fan of the _Gabriel_ brand and Adrien’s work as a model, she had slowly realized over the years that Adrien modeled for his father more out of obligation and in an attempt to have something in common with him rather than out of any kind of enjoyment of his job.

Adrien grimaced, popping one of the snickerdoodle macarons into his mouth to stall a little before having to answer. “…Honestly? …I hate it.”

Ladybug winced. “Sorry.”

He shrugged and shook his head. “It’s just how things are. I mean, I’ll eventually stop modeling and run the company when the time comes, but…”

“You don’t want to run your father’s company either,” she surmised. “…What are you studying in university?”

“Business,” he sighed, grabbing a lemon curd tart. “I kind of hate that too. I’m not really suited for it. I get by okay and do well in class, but it doesn’t come naturally to me, and I don’t enjoy it the way some of my classmates do.”

“So…other than for the sake of your relationship with your father, why are you doing this to yourself?” she dared to ask the question she had always wondered but never had the nerve to voice as Marinette.

He looked at her for a minute in surprise.

No one had ever asked him that before. No one had ever thought to ask Adrien what he wanted to do with his life, what his dreams were. Everything had always been assumed and planned by someone else, just like all the other aspects of his life had always been.

“I…” He pursed his lips and frowned, trying to come up with a good answer.

Why had he always gone along with it?

…Because that was the way that things had _always_ been.

“I don’t think there is another reason,” he admitted.

“…Is your relationship with your father something you’re willing to be miserable the rest of your life for?” she pressed her luck, feeling emboldened behind her mask.

He looked away and laughed ruefully. “I don’t know how to answer that.”

“That’s okay,” she assured gently. “You don’t have to answer now, but…maybe that’s something you just want to think about going forward?”

He was quiet for a minute as he studied the blackcurrants in the scones. “…What else would I do if I didn’t run _Gabriel_ and model?” he finally asked in a soft, uncertain tone.

“Well…brainstorm a bit,” she encouraged. “What are some things that sound fun? What would you _want_ to do with your life? What do you think would make you happy?”

He pursed his lips and gave his mind permission to go where it willed. “I don’t know. I haven’t exactly let myself think about it because my future has always been set in stone, but…I have daydreamed about what it would be like to be a househusband,” he chuckled.

She couldn’t help but blush as she imagined coming home from her atelier to Adrien in the kitchen with their baby secured to him in a carrier sling and their toddler on his hip while the six-year-old played on the floor of the adjoining den with the dog.

“I think that’s completely impracticable, though, because I lack basic survival skills like the ability to clean a toilet or do laundry,” he added, trying to be honest about his skill set while still not scaring her away.

“Well, you could always learn,” she prompted, not wanting to give up her mental image of Adrien as homemaker.

He shook his head. “I don’t think I’d actually want to be a stay-at-home-dad anyway. Yes, I would love to spend that much time with my kids, but I’ve been stuck at home by myself my whole life. I really want a job where I can get out and interact with my peers, socialize, feel like I’m connected to others. I’m sure being a househusband would be great and rewarding in its own right, but I think I want to work outside of the home at least part-time.”

Ladybug bit her lip, considering his line of reasoning before ultimately deciding that he was right. “Okay. So, what else would you want to do?”

He hummed contemplatively, finishing off his scone as he mulled it over. “Maybe I could do something with piano?”

“That’s a thought,” she replied encouragingly. “You seem to enjoy it when you play with Kitty Section.”

“Yeah,” he agreed. “I’m actually a big fan of ragtime and jazz. I like doing piano arrangements of popular songs too. I mean, I _do_ love the classical repertoire as well, but I don’t think I’d enjoying touring as a soloist…if I were even that good,” he snorted disparagingly. “I’m not. My father will be the first to tell you I’m not good enough. I’m a hobbyist, really, so…I don’t think people would pay money to hear me play.”

“Could you teach?” she suggested, throwing the idea out there.

Adrien shrugged, his expression lukewarm. “I mean, I guess I could, but I don’t think I’d actually enjoy it. It’s not my passion. …It would be better than slaving away at my father’s company, though.”

“Well, what’s something you _would_ enjoy?” she kept pressing him, trying to get him to think outside of the box. “You do so many activities. Could you do something with fencing? How about Chinese? Could you go teach French or English or something abroad? Could you be an interpreter? Translator?”

“I could translate manga,” he replied softly, surprised as the idea popped into his head. “I don’t know. That could either be fun or turn something I love into something that stresses me out.”

“It’s an idea, though,” she praised, giving him a wide smile of approval as a reward. “The point is just to get you to weigh your options and think of the possibilities. What else?”

He let out a startled laugh as an idea caught him off guard. “Okay, this is crazy, but I’ve sometimes daydreamed about Tom and Sabine Dupain-Cheng adopting me and teaching me how to be a baker.”

Her eyes flew open, and she blinked repeatedly in shock. “Oh, but…then you couldn’t marry Marinette.”

The smile fell off his face. “Shoot. That—” He caught himself and cut himself off before he could further explore the consequences of being adopted by the Dupain-Chengs on his love life. “Okay. I just want to point out that _you_ brought up Marinette this time.”

Ladybug raised her hands in surrender. “Okay. Guilty. …What else would you want to do with your life?”

He tapped out a silent melody against his thigh with his left hand as he went back to the mental drawing board. “I don’t know. I’ve thought about being a florist. I think that would be nice, working with flowers and talking to customers. I don’t know much about flowers, but my mother had a garden, and I liked helping her out.”

She nodded supportively. “That’s a realistic idea. Honestly, you’ve probably made or inherited enough money that you don’t necessarily need to worry about working for a living. It should just be an enjoyable job that makes you happy and makes you feel accomplished. If you like working with people, a customer service job is perfectly respectable, even though it doesn’t make much.”

“My father would have a heart attack if I told him I was going to run away and become a shop clerk,” Adrien snickered, imagining the look on Gabriel’s face.

Ladybug had to hold in a burst of laughter at the mental image too and ended up snorting unattractively.

Of course, Adrien thought she had the most gorgeous snort ever.

“If that’s what makes you happy, though,” she pressed. “I don’t want you to end up wasting away, hating your job as a cog in the corporate machine. You deserve better than that.”

“Yeah,” he replied hesitantly. “I think maybe I do.”

“You _do_. Ask anyone,” she insisted.

He nodded, repeating, “Maybe I do. Maybe I should tell my father I want to…start acting classes next semester.”

“Really?” she asked excitedly.

“Yeah,” he affirmed with a wide smile. “I mean…why not? It’s fun, and I used to be good at it. I think I’m _still_ good at it. I could at least give it a try and see if it sticks because anything would be better than taking over the company. I can always start there and see what happens, see if I find something I like better along the way.”

“Adrien, that’s wonderful!” she cheered, taking him by the hand and squeezing it joyously. “I’m so happy for you! This is definitely a step in the right direction. Like you said, you can go from here and see if you come up with something else you’d rather do, but just taking that first step and trying to find a career you’d enjoy is huge! Congratulations!”

“Thanks,” he chuckled in satisfaction, proud of himself for making such a big decision. “Seriously. Thank you for having this conversation with me. Like Marinette told you, I don’t get to make my own choices much because everything in my life is so structured and things are often decided for me, so this really is a big deal. I hadn’t ever _seriously_ thought about trying to change the course others had set me on. Thank you, Nelle.”

She couldn’t bear to meet his gaze as he beamed at her like she had created the solar system. It was too much for her already overflowing heart.

“You’re welcome,” she mumbled shyly. “I’m really just glad I could help.”

“You did,” he insisted, “and I shall forever be in your debt.”

“I don’t know about that,” she hummed in amusement, giving his hand a squeeze before pulling back and returning to her fast-cooling tea. “So…what kind of roles would you be interested in acting? And would you do stage plays like your mom or musicals or movies or TV shows or what? What kind of characters do you want to play? I can easily see you as the charming romantic male lead,” she chuckled.

He bit his lip and thought for a moment, recalling theatre productions that held special meaning for him. “I’m thinking plays and musicals mostly. Maybe some occasional opera or movies or TV, but mainly the stage. …And…I’m not sure about romantic male leads, honestly.”

She arched an eyebrow in open curiosity. “Oh, no? What kind of characters interest you?”

“Well…” He bit the inside of his cheek, remembering the roles his mother had performed over the years, the characters he’d looked up to and wanted to be like. “I mean, yeah. Obviously, there are some lead male romantic roles that I’d be interested in, but…”

He looked away and scratched at the back of his neck as he tried to decide how and whether to go into it.

He gazed back at her and replied cautiously, “The roles I’m most drawn to are actually female roles. Like Laura in [The Glass Menagerie](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Glass_Menagerie) or Shelby in [Steel Magnolias](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steel_Magnolias_\(play\)) or Viola in [Twelfth Night](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelfth_Night) or Irina in [Three Sisters](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Sisters_\(play\)).”

She blinked in surprise. “O-Oh.”

“I think it’s because I’ve always really admired my mom, and those were the kinds of roles she’d play,” he hastily explained, beginning to fidget with the cuff of his sleeve. “I grew up idolizing these characters and aspiring to be like them. I’ve always identified more strongly with female characters in fiction.”

He looked up nervously to see how she was processing this, and she seemed to be listening with surprised curiosity, no disgust or horror or judgment, so he tentatively continued.

“It’s because of how I was raised. I mean, I’ve always been really sheltered, really controlled and restricted. I know there are strong female characters who shape their own destinies in fiction too, but I saw a lot of movies and read a lot of books where the female characters didn’t always have that power, and I really identified with them,” he explained ruefully, gaze flicking down to the half-eaten lemon curd tart on his plate.

“So the roles I’m more interested in are women who use whatever they have at hand to take control of their lives and make the best of their situations and find happiness, even though the system is stacked against them,” he mumbled, hoping at least some of what he was saying made sense to her.

“…I can see the appeal of portraying a story that aligns more closely with your own,” Ladybug replied carefully, wary of tripping the wrong wire.

He looked up at her in surprise, pleased at her neutral-to-positive response. “Oh, good. Because I was kind of worried about what you would think of me saying, ‘Yeah. I want to cross-dress and play women’s parts’.”

She shook her head, assuring, “No. The way you explained it makes sense. If you identify with the characters, you identify with the characters.”

His dour expression lightened a bit as he nodded, happy that she was hearing him and understanding at least somewhat. “Good. Because…I know everyone always sees me as some handsome, rich, prince-like personality or Paris’s most eligible bachelor, but the truth is, I’m more of a princess.”

Her head tipped to the side curiously at his word choice. “How so?” she inquired carefully, not wanting to step on any toes.

“I told you about how Marinette is a butt-kicking, world-saving princess, right?”

She nodded, remember the conversation they’d had the week before when she’d seen her civilian identity listed as “Princesse” in his phone.

“Well, I’m the ‘princess in a tower’ variety,” he sighed. “I’m a princess trying to break free of her prison so she can find happiness and be her authentic self. I’m not quite sure how I’m going to get there yet, but…I’m working on it.”

Ladybug bit her lip as what Adrien had been saying struck a chord in her mind. “Adrien?” she called tentatively.

“Hm?” He met her gaze.

“I know you said you identified most strongly with female characters,” she proceeded with caution, “but would you also say that _you_ identify more as female yourself?”

He paused and blinked at her as he pondered the question. “…I don’t know,” he replied after careful consideration. “I mean, no, probably not, but I don’t necessarily identify very strongly with the typical male stereotypes either. I’m just me,” he summarized.

She nodded, accepting his answer. “Okay. Thanks for answering.”

“Sure,” he replied with a slowly growing smile. “I mean…I don’t know if that was much of an answer. I’m sure it raised more questions than it put to rest, but…I guess the main thing is that it’s not a big deal to me. I don’t feel uncomfortable in my body, and there’s nothing in particular I feel like I need to change physically or behaviorally. And, besides, the idea of ‘gender’ is just a societal construct that’s completely made up anyway, so I don’t personally feel like it’s important or relevant in my life.”

Ladybug nodded, not really fully understanding but getting the important parts.

“Like I said, there are male roles that I’d want to play too,” he continued, encouraged by her supportive response, “but I wish people wouldn’t freak out if I said I wanted to be Elsa or Elphaba or Jasmine. I wish there weren’t these dumb rules telling me what I’m allowed to do because I have a Y chromosome,” he huffed and then paused as he mentally reviewed the conversation.

“I’m sorry. This is kind of a heavy topic, isn’t it?” he realized, grimacing and hoping he hadn’t freaked her out.

“It’s fine,” she assured. “I mean gender identity isn’t something I’ve ever really thought about too much, so it’s really interesting to hear you talk about it.”

“Sorry,” he repeated, wondering if this was going to come back to bite him. “I realize this is sort of a weird conversation for a first date.” He winced, mumbling, “Maybe this is why I generally don’t get invited on second dates.”

“No. Adrien, you’re seriously fine,” she insisted, giving his sleeve a playful tug. “Thank you for sharing. I’m really glad that you felt comfortable talking about this with me.”

He gave her a scrutinizing look, worried that she was just being nice so that he didn’t get akumatized but secretly planning to never ask him out again. “Are you sure? I haven’t scared you away?”

She shook her head, giving him a kind smile. “No, you goof. Absolutely not. Like I said before, I genuinely want to get to know the real you, Adrien, so I’m actually really excited to learn more about you.”

She seemed sincere, but he was only ninety percent convinced. He’d have to see how the rest of the date went.

“Okay,” he eventually relented. “But…maybe you talk now,” he suggested with a sheepish chuckle. “I feel like I’m monopolizing the conversation with all of my deep, dark confessions. Tell me something about you,” he prompted, peridot eyes gazing hopefully, expectantly, into hers.

She gulped. “Oh. Um…. Okay. I…” She bit her lip, trying to come up with something sufficiently deep that it would balance out the things he had shared with her without being something so personal that it would jeopardize her secret identity.

She looked out at the city and took a deep breath. “I guess…in terms of ‘confessions’…I don’t know if this is necessarily considered a dark secret, but it is something I try to keep hidden.”

“Yeah?” he prompted gently, watching the way the bright, late-afternoon sun lit her face as he sipped at his mint tea.

“I doubt myself a lot,” she confided. “We talked about this a bit last week when I visited to ask you out, but I feel like the public sees me as this infallible, magical machine whom they can always rely on to save the day and figure things out and miraculously fix everything, but…the truth is, under this mask, I’m just a twenty-year-old trying to make it through university and succeed in my career and maybe find love and not screw up too bad.”

She smiled bitterly and shook her head. “I’m not perfect. I mess up. I make really disastrous mistakes sometimes, and there are times when I _don’t_ know what to do.”

She looked up and continued in a slightly guarded tone, “Did you know I almost didn’t become Ladybug?”

His eyes widened as his heart sank at the thought of never meeting her, never fighting by her side, never knowing the joys and pain of loving her. “What?” he breathed.

She shook her head, chuckling ironically. “That first akuma was really rough for me. I had zero self-confidence, and I was totally freaking out. I mean, I was thirteen and a total klutz. I couldn’t even stand up for myself against bullies. How the hell was I supposed to fight supervillains and save Paris?”

“So, what happened?” he pressed, setting aside his teacup.

“I tried to give the earrings to a friend. I slipped them into her bag, but she didn’t find them, and then she was in danger, and…” She shrugged. “I sucked it up and put on the earrings. Mostly it was Chat Noir, though.”

His heart forgot how to beat for a second, and his lungs momentarily stopped functioning. “Chat Noir?”

She nodded, her smile turning warm and affectionate.

He nearly died of happiness on the spot, seeing her wear that expression while thinking about _him_.

“He believed in me,” she explained, her grin growing wider. “He believed in me and encouraged me to keep going when I didn’t believe in myself. I’m only Ladybug today because of him.”

“Oh,” Adrien exhaled, heart fluttering in his ears.

To hear her say that… He hadn’t known how much his words had meant to her, what an effect he’d had.

“Yeah,” she affirmed, chuckling to herself as she picked up a tuna salad sandwich. “So, I’ve never been very good at being my own cheerleader. I’ve struggled with self-doubt from the very beginning, and I’ve never really gotten much better. I mean, I _have_ gained some self-confidence with each year of experience, but…I still doubt myself all the time.”

“How so?” he inquired.

In truth, he already had a good idea. She’d sometimes confided in Chat Noir about her doubts and sought comfort in his friendship, but he wanted her to feel comfortable telling Adrien as well.

Plagg had been right that the dynamic between Ladybug and Adrien would be different than between Ladybug and Chat Noir, but Adrien wanted to do all that he could to shrink the divide between them as fast as possible.

“Well,” she cleared her throat and looked away with a soft, cherry blossom blush to match her sunglasses. “Just the latest example of me doubting myself and chickening out would be asking you out as Ladybug.”

His eyebrows inched together into a slightly befuddled frown. “How so?”

She bit her lip and glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, seeming to size him up as she debated how much to tell him. “…We’ve met before.”

He quirked an eyebrow, thinking that that much was obvious. She’d saved Adrien any number of times over the years.

“When I’m not Ladybug,” she clarified.

“Oh,” he replied, trying not to overreact because he knew she’d freak out if he let slip that he had figured that they knew one another as civilians when she’d asked him out.

“Yeah,” she sighed, still mentally kicking herself. “I could have approached you as myself, but I was afraid you wouldn’t say yes, and I’d heard you were a fan of Ladybug, so…”

“…From Alya?” he deduced.

She gave a start and stared at him like a mouse staring down a cobra. “Ye—No. What? No. Why would I—? …Alya who?”

He snorted in laughter and shook his head. “You know Alya who. The only people who know about my ludicrous crush on you are my friends Nino, Luka, and Alya. Alya told you, didn’t she?”

Ladybug froze in a panic, mind reeling as she tried to process what exactly Adrien thought he knew and how he knew it and what was going on. Eventually, she gave up and admitted defeat.

“She was just trying to give me the confidence to get me to confess to you as _me_. She didn’t mean to rat you out or anything. She was just trying to help because she knew we both liked one another, so please don’t be mad,” she pleaded, sick with herself at having given Alya away.

Meanwhile, Adrien was internally panicking because Ladybug very much made it sound like Alya knew her secret identity, and he wasn’t sure what to think about that.

On the outside, he kept his composure, pushing away those thoughts for contemplation later and assuring, “I’m not angry. No worries. Like you said, she was just trying to help us.”

Ladybug nodded, sighing half in relief, half in regret. “I should have listened to her. I should have believed in myself a little more and just sucked it up and asked you out as myself instead of hiding behind this mask.” She clicked her tongue and shook her head. “I wish I would have asked you as me.”

“Yeah,” he replied softly, wistfully. “Me too.”

She turned to look at him in open astonishment. “Really? You do?”

He slipped his hand into hers, giving her a glowing smile that lit up his chlorophyll-green eyes. “Yeah, I really do. I know I’d love you under the mask once I got to know you.”

“Oh,” she gasped, her entire being melting even as she wondered how he came up with these lines and delivered them in such a way that the came across as painfully sweet and one hundred percent in earnest.

“Oh,” she repeated, realizing yet again how profoundly she had screwed this up. “I really should have asked you out as me because I don’t think we can keep doing this superhero dating thing,” she confessed in a tortured groan.

His eyes flew open in alarm. “Wait. What?”

He knew that. Deep down, he knew that it couldn’t be, but the prospect of living in a world where he knew she loved him and yet couldn’t be with him was becoming less and less supportable the more time he spent with her pretending that he could have this dream come true without any consequences.

She shook her head, looking down at the basilica roof. “I’m sorry. Just this short time we’ve spent together today has already been incredibly fun. I do like you, and I am having a good time, but the more I think about this all rationally, I don’t think this is tenable.”

He hated when she stopped and thought with her head instead of her heart. He was really enjoying his date with rash, impulsive Ladybug, and he wasn’t quite ready for responsible Ladybug to come back yet.

“I mean,” she continued with a snort, “putting aside all the safety issues, how can you be in a relationship with a girl who _lies_ to you?”

He blinked, taken aback by her point of focus.

“You’re not lying,” he responded automatically, gaping at her in surprise.

She grimaced and sent a sheepish smile his way. “I’m sort of lying,” she haggled. “At the very least, I’m not telling the whole truth…and I feel like a horrible person,” she blew out with a sigh, regretting having sunk this low.

“You’re not a horrible person,” he whispered, scooting in closer and placing a reassuring hand on her back, beginning to rub soothing circles as his other hand gave hers a squeeze. “You’re _not_. You’re amazing and kind and brilliant and selfless. You’re one of the _best_ people I know, Nelle.”

Her lips were slowly persuaded to form a genuine smile at his unwavering patience and support. “Thank you…. Part of me still feels like a liar, though.”

He bit his lip. “…Well, you’re not a horrible person…and maybe I have my own secrets,” he suggested, trying to lighten the load of guilt upon her shoulders.

She looked up at him, eyes narrowing as they studied his face searchingly. “Adrien…are you…?”

He held his breath, mind and pulse racing as he debated the odds of her having figured him out. She _was_ exceptionally sharp.

“Are you Papillon?” she teased, arching a mock-skeptical eyebrow.

He burst out laughing. “Not…Not to my knowledge,” he managed, half relieved and half disappointed.

“Then, I think I can forgive you,” she informed softly, leaning in to place the daydream of a kiss to his cheek.

He nearly swooned.

“…I just hope you can forgive me,” she added in a dejected whisper.

“I’d forgive you anything…” He touched his lips to her temple, tempted to call her “My Lady” and out himself then and there.

“…Nelle.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what did you think? I don't know if I'm doing a good job with this pairing or not. -.-; I hope you're enjoying my take on Ladrien. The number of comments on the last chapter suddenly plummeted to half the usual amount, and I'm trying to figure out what went wrong so I can write Ladrien better in the future if I ever decide to do so again. I'm guessing I bombed it somehow, and I'm not thinking people are going to like this chapter any better because it's not as fun. -.-;
> 
> Oh, well. People liked up to Chapter Nine, so I think I'll write more friendship stories in the future, but maybe I'll just stay clear of Ladrien. How does one write good Ladrien? Was there not enough blushing? Was this chapter any better? Worse? I'm at a total loss. -.-;
> 
> Maybe people will like Chapter Twelve, though. I think it's more fun than Chapter Eleven. I'm not quite done with Chapter Twelve, but I should have it ready by Friday. You may have noticed that I upped the chapter count to thirteen. I didn't want to tack the full reveal and aftermath onto the end of Chapter Twelve (which is already four thousand words, and I still have to write one more scene), so the reveal and aftermath get their own chapter which I hope to have written in time for next Tuesday's update. I'll let you know on Friday what the status is.
> 
> Thanks for reading, everyone. I'll see you again on Friday, 12/25/2020. Take care!
> 
> References:  
> Bellini: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vincenzo_Bellini  
> Rossini: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gioachino_Rossini  
> Puccini: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giacomo_Puccini  
> Pescatarian: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pescetarianism  
> A Streetcar Named Desire: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Streetcar_Named_Desire  
> The Glass Menagerie: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Glass_Menagerie  
> Steel Magnolias: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steel_Magnolias_(play)  
> Twelfth Night: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelfth_Night  
> Three Sisters: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Sisters_(play)


	12. The Realization

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien connects the spots.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! Merry Christmas to all those celebrating. To all those not, happy Friday! I hope you're all having a wonderful day.
> 
> First off, thank you so much for your comments on last chapter. Like I've mentioned, this is my first Ladrien story, and I don't feel like I know what I'm doing with the pairing yet, so I just kind of assumed that I'd blown it with Chapter Ten. I'm really glad that it wasn't something I did but rather an issue of timing and dislike of the pairing.
> 
> Here is the final installment of the Ladrien date. Next chapter is the full reveal and the aftermath.
> 
> Enjoy!

Adrien scooted away, back to a suitable distance on the picnic blanket. “Um…so…maybe we should talk about, like, normal things now?” he suggested, grabbing a petit four from the tiered tea tray.

“That’s probably a good idea,” Ladybug chuckled nervously, scratching at her cheek as she tried to take deep breaths to get her racing heart rate and flaming blush down. “What would you like to talk about?”

“You,” he replied immediately.

Her blush only worsened. “What about me?”

“Personal things…but not incredibly personal things,” he gave a temperate response, reaching but not pushing too hard. “You know. Things like your favourite book, favourite movie, favourite colour. What kind of music you listen to. Hobbies. Tell me about you.”

“Only if you tell me about _you_ too,” she haggled.

He chuckled as his own cheeks started to heat up. “You haven’t had enough of getting to know the real Adrien Agreste yet? I would have thought I’d have scared you off a dozen times over by now.”

She shook her head and smiled shyly. “Definitely not. What you’ve told me has only made me more intrigued.”

He gave her an appraising once-over, debating before finally giving in. “All right. So long as you’re not sick of me yet.”

“Never,” she assured. “First question?”

“What colour are your bedroom walls painted?” he inquired.

She quirked an eyebrow at the unexpected question and took a minute before answering cautiously. “…Pink. Why?”

“What shade?” he pressed, wanting to be able to envisage it exactly.

“Light pink. Like cherry blossoms,” she granted, giving in to his curiosity. “Why do you ask?”

“Just wondering about the girl on the other side of the mask,” he confessed. “Sometimes I think about what she’s like, what kinds of activities she does in her free time, what kinds of things she surrounds herself with.”

She shrugged, shaking her head as she looked away. “I don’t know if I’m worth that much thought,” she chuckled self-deprecatingly. “I’m just a normal girl. Not that interesting.”

“You’re interesting to me,” he informed gently, a soft affection in his eyes that made her chest feel tight.

“Oh…. I…I’m glad,” she managed with a bashful smile, wishing she could get across what his words truly meant to her. “Well…in that case…what’s your next question?”

The rest of their rooftop picnic continued in that vein with Ladybug sharing that she was a huge fan of Jagged Stone but had developed a liking for the music XY was putting out since he cut ties with his father’s label and started collaborating with Luka Couffaine.

Adrien confessed that he didn’t do well with scary movies because they gave him nightmares and made him afraid to shower.

“What horror movie had anything to do with showers?” Ladybug replied quizzically. “You mean because of the shower scene in [The Shining](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shining_\(film\)) or [Psycho](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psycho_\(1960_film\))?”

He shook his head. “I’ve never seen those movies, actually, and [the trailer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S014oGZiSdI) for The Shining freaked me out enough that I feel like I’ve experienced enough of it for one lifetime,” he chuckled, rubbing at the back of his neck. “It’s just…I feel so vulnerable in there. Naked. Alone. I feel like a sitting duck. Anything could come and get me while I was defenseless. I’m really easily startled after I see a horror movie, so I’m always anxious about showering for at least a week afterwards.”

Ladybug nodded, trying (and failing) not to picture Adrien in his shower complete with a stereotypically sexy backing track. It also took some effort not to volunteer to sit in his bathroom with him while he showered to protect him after he next watched a horror film.

She was very tempted to suggest watching a horror movie as part of their date so that she could make the offer.

Instead, she replied, “I can see why you would feel that way. I’m always jumpy after watching horror films too” like a normal, non-psychotic person.

They cleaned up their picnic and stowed the leftovers in the wicker basket, tucking it back into the seam between the roof and one of the small white domes topping the church for Ladybug to return for later.

She got out her yoyo and surreptitiously dropped them down into an alley a few streets over so that they could nonchalantly walk out and join the crowd of visitors enjoying the iconic sights and locals going about their daily lives.

“Um…I thought we could do some window shopping?” Ladybug tentatively suggested. “Walk around? People watch? Browse? It’s a nice day, so… I mean, I know it’s a little touristy, but—”

“—That sounds great,” he cut her off with a wide grin, slipping his hand into hers. “I actually haven’t seen much of Paris, despite growing up here,” he confessed sheepishly. “I’ve always been a little…um…”

He tried to think of a nice way to say, “held prisoner”.

“…sheltered, I guess, so I wouldn’t be opposed to playing tourist, if you don’t mind.”

“Oh. No. Sure!” she agreed, a little flustered by the proximity of his radiant smile in the narrow alley as well as the weight and warmth of his hand in hers. “I’m happy so long as you’re happy.”

“I’m happy just being with you,” he countered with a wink, not noticing how she turned into a puddle of goo in response.

He gave her hand a squeeze and turned to guide them out of the alley and onto the cobbled street where visitors from all over the globe were moving from one shop to the next.

They too began to browse, chuckling at the whacky souvenirs for sale in shop after shop: cheap plastic trinkets, shirts, hats, magnets, shot glasses, snow globes…

Adrien held up a Paris-themed oven mitt in black, white, pink, and grey. “This is actually kind of cute,” he chuckled, musing, “It reminds me of Marinette…. I wonder if she’d like it.”

“I think she’d like anything if it was from you,” Ladybug sighed, heart filling to the brim once more as his thoughts drifted to her civilian identity.

Why had she never seen how much he liked her, how much Marinette meant to Adrien? She’d been blinded by his not obviously reciprocating her romantic feelings, so she’d missed out on how much he truly cared for her.

“You think?” he hummed, pleased at her response. “Maybe, but it’s not really practical. I’m sure she has dozens of oven mitts already with her parents being bakers, but… Could you do me a favor?” He looked to her with earnest eyes that made her gulp.

She bit her tongue to hold back the automatic, “Anything for you” that wanted to come out. “Uh, yeah. Sure. What do you need?”

“Could you take a picture and send it to me so I can text it to Marinette later? I left my phone at home so that my family couldn’t track the GPS,” he informed sheepishly.

“Oh, yeah. Sure,” she readily agreed, taking a peek around to make sure that no one was watching before she flipped open her yoyo and snapped a quick picture, forwarding it to him.

“Thanks, Nelle,” he expressed warmly, as if she had fulfilled one of [Princess Kaguya’s](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tale_of_the_Bamboo_Cutter) impossible quests.

“Sure thing.” She blushed as she boldly dared to join their hands once more, interlacing her fingers with his.

He smiled and gave her hand a squeeze.

She loved when he did that.

“They even have the stereotypical [accordion music](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlQMxkdWcSo),” Adrien snickered in amusement as he tossed a hundred euro note into the performer’s case as they passed. “It’s just like in the movies.”

“You’ve never been up here to Montmartre before?” Ladybug tried not to laugh as the accordionist quickly snatched the bill and tucked it into his inner jacket pocket.

Adrien shook his head. “I mean, I’ve been for work, but I’ve never been able to just wander around like this. It’s so different, seeing it in a relaxed, natural atmosphere.”

Ladybug nodded, guiding him towards the Place du Tertre, a little cobbled square where artists had set up to sell their work. “Yeah, I’d imagine a photoshoot wouldn’t provide a very calm environment during which to sightsee.”

“Yeah, unfortunately not. It’s kind of…structured,” he sighed, getting distracted by a middle-aged artist setting out beautiful pastel watercolors of Notre Dame in different seasons at sunset as seen from the Left Bank.

“I wish I was artistic,” he hummed mournfully, moving along to peruse the other artists’ wares before he was tempted or coerced into buying something.

“You could be,” Ladybug encouraged, stepping in closer to avoid a collision with a young American woman who was also browsing.

He shook his head, laughing good-naturedly at himself. “I have, like, zero talent. I can’t even do stick-figures well.”

“You could if you practiced,” she insisted. “It’s true that some people are born with innate talent, but drawing and painting can be learned even if they don’t come naturally. Being artistic is a skill, and, with enough practice, you could learn to be artistic too.”

He hummed as he stopped to admire a medium-sized canvas where an autumn scene set in the Bois de Boulogne was taking form with scarlet, ochre, and tangerine leaves peppering the trees.

“I think ‘enough’ practice would take many years. Still, it couldn’t hurt to try,” he reasoned. “I’m definitely not going to magically gain the ability to produce anything close to _that_ just by whining about how I wish I could do it.”

“You’re not whining,” she assured, inching in closer so that their shoulders brushed. She gave him a shy, heartening smile. “You’re just being honest about what you want for yourself, and it’s okay to do that. It’s not whining.”

She knew his father was often very critical and chastised Adrien whenever he seemed to slide even one toe over the arbitrary line Gabriel had mentally drawn for him. If possible, she wanted to help Adrien to see that it was okay to voice his desires and complaints from time to time without it being considered “whining”.

“Thanks,” he replied softly, the warm look in his eyes partially obscured behind his movie star sunglasses, but she was close enough to see it. “I really appreciate the encouragement. I don’t exactly get a lot of that.”

“Well, I’ll have to see about changing that,” she declared, giving his arm a squeeze.

He smiled affectionately, and they walked on around the square, continuing to browse the various artists’ renditions of many a famous Paris landmark.

“…You know,” he remarked thoughtfully. “My father actually does a fair amount of drawing for work. Maybe I could ask him to teach me.”

“That could be a good way to spend time together,” she agreed, nodding with a supportive smile.

Adrien cringed. “Except that my father isn’t the most patient man, so he’d probably get frustrated with my turtle’s pace progress and end up berating me instead of helping me get better. That’s kind of how our relationship works,” he admitted with a discouraged sigh.

Ladybug bit her lip, searching her mind for a way to build up his self-esteem and lighten the mood. “Well, Marinette isn’t the _best_ artist around, but she does do some drawing as part of her own designing work, so, if you really want to learn, maybe she could get you started in the right direction.”

“That’s actually a really good idea,” Adrien chuckled, turning his head to look at her. “Marinette…”

His brain ran into a mental brick wall as it processed for the first time how close she was and how familiar she looked…and not only because of how long he had cumulatively spent over the years staring at her as Ladybug.

“…Marinette…” he whispered, a revelation shaking him to his very core.

Ladybug had known him and fallen in love with him as a civilian, yet she didn’t think he’d say yes if she asked him out as herself. Ladybug and Marinette had intended to ask him out to coffee at the same time. The way Marinette acted around Chat Noir… He’d always marveled at how sassy and fun she was with him when he was the masked superhero as opposed to how she could barely talk to Adrien for about a year after they’d first met. In those moments when it was just Marinette and Chat Noir hanging out and being goofballs, she had reminded him so much of his Lady.

Now that he was looking at Ladybug and saying, “Marinette”, it all seemed so obvious.

Ladybug tipped her head to the side, waiting for Adrien to continue. “‘Marinette’…what? Is something wrong, Adrien?”

“Nope. Everything’s wonderful, Nette—uh—Nelle. Sorry. Just…” He mentally scrambled to pull together his thoughts and snap back into the moment because she was not going to be happy when she found out her secret was blown, and he really just wanted this date to continue forever, so…

“Sorry.” He covered up his flurry of thoughts with a practiced smile. “Just got distracted thinking about how wonderful Marinette is.”

“O-Oh,” she coughed, a crimson blush swelling up in her cheeks as she bashfully looked away. “Yeah. That’s…Marinette is…good.”

It _had_ to be her…didn’t it? He was almost ninety-nine percent positive. There had to be some way to explain away the times he’d thought he’d seen them together over the years. Both his Lady and his Princess were smart enough to orchestrate some kind of elaborate scheme to throw him off the scent.

“Marinette is _amazing_ ,” he stressed, trying to keep his cat-that-ate-the-canary grin under wraps. “She’s super talented and such a fantastic person. If anyone could teach me how to draw, it would be her.”

Ladybug’s blush deepened. “You should ask her, then.”

“I think I will,” Adrien chuckled. “…Do you happen to draw, Nelle?”

“Uh…a little,” she answered, slightly thrown off by the question and still unsettled by his effusive praise of her civilian self. “I mean, I’m not very good, but I enjoy sketching and doodling.”

“What do you draw?” he inquired as innocently as possible.

“Oh, this and that,” she hedged with a shrug.

“Do you ever draw clothing?” he pressed, throwing his scruples out the window along with his resolution not to try to figure out her identity.

“Uh…sometimes,” she admitted. “I mean, like I said, I’m not very good, but…I like designing clothes and accessories. It’s always fun, especially when I have someone in mind I’m designing for. It’s fun to see how I can make their personalities come out in whatever I’m making.”

“I bet you’re amazing at it,” he cooed reverently, remember all the things he’d seen Marinette make for him and their friends over the years. “Have you ever thought about pursuing fashion professionally? Is that something you’d be interested in?”

“Actually…” She bit her lip, wondering if she was giving a little too much away.

He smiled at her, hanging on her every word as if entranced.

“Yes,” she admitted. “I have given it some thought. I mean, somewhat. I don’t know that I’d make it in the big leagues like your father, but…maybe it would be nice to have a little boutique where I took commissions and did a lot of custom pieces.”

“I bet you’d be wonderful,” he replied enthusiastically, face glowing. “If you ever need help with anything, please feel free to use me as a resource. I’ve got all kinds of contacts I could set you up with. Whatever you need,” he stressed.

“Thank you,” she shyly responded, cheeks darkening to match her dress.

“Anytime,” he assured, giving her arm a playful nudge.

They completed their loop around the square and continued window-shopping, ending up at a little café called La Gallete des Moulins for a snack because Adrien thought the fig tart that they saw through the window looked scrumptious.

“You haven’t had enough sweets for one day?” Ladybug teased, waggling her eyebrows at him. “Better be careful or you’re going to lose your girlish figure.”

Adrien waved her away as he handed the money over to the young woman manning the cash register. “I _never_ get sweets, though. I’m running on a sweets deficit, so I have a lot of catching up to do while I’m not being strictly monitored.”

“You poor thing,” she sighed, pitying him in earnest as they headed out to the fenced-off patio area to sit. “That can’t be fun having people telling you what you can and can’t eat all the time. I’m sorry, Adrien.”

“Thanks. Though, it’s not so bad.” He smiled and shrugged it off as he set down the tray on one of the small green tables right alongside the fence and pulled out one of the wicker chairs for her with a bow. “Nino shares junk food, and Marinette, bless her, sneaks me pastries from time to time. That girl is a saint.”

“I’m glad someone is taking care of you. Thank you,” she chuckled as she took the seat.

He settled in across from her and started on his tart. “You sure you don’t want a bite?”

She eyed the tart appraisingly and considered how much she had already eaten in front of him so far. She didn’t want to look like a pig, but…

“Is it good?” she inquired.

He made an evaluating noise. “Meh. It’s not bad. The crust is nice, and the custard is nearly perfect, but it just doesn’t compare with the raspberry custard mini tarts we had earlier,” he replied honestly. “I’m sort of spoiled on Tom and Sabine’s, and the delicacies that Marinette made for us earlier just blow this out of the water. It’s not bad, though,” he judged fairly. “The figs are delicious, for one.”

“May I try a fig?” she asked, reaching out preemptively, fingers hovering over a slice.

“Go for it,” he encouraged, motioning for her to help herself. “…Hey, so…do you mind if I ask you more questions about yourself?”

She laughed, quirking an eyebrow. “You haven’t run out of questions yet? You were pretty thorough earlier.”

“I don’t think I asked the right questions,” he confessed, watching, mesmerized, as she licked the custard off of the fig.

“What kinds of questions do you have for me?” she hummed, pretending to entertain the idea of answering.

“Do you like video games?” he inquired, keeping up an innocent front, despite his firm intention to delve deeper.

In addition to Ultimate Mecha Strike, Adrien had found out as Chat Noir that Marinette was into some pretty niche games. She hadn’t mentioned them to Adrien, so Ladybug shouldn’t have any reason to suspect the trap. While it was possible that people besides Marinette had played games like [Pyre](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyre_\(video_game\)), [Titanic: Adventure Out of Time](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanic:_Adventure_Out_of_Time), and [The Missing: J.J. MacField and the Island of Memories](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Missing:_J.J._Macfield_and_the_Island_of_Memories), it was unlikely that Ladybug had coincidentally played all of the same niche video games as Marinette unless they were, in fact, the same person.

One way or another, Adrien was going to find out because if they were one and the same, if it were possible to be with the woman he’d fallen for twice, Adrien was more than willing to bend some rules and break some promises. He’d waited so long already, and if she really did love him in return, maybe she’d find some way to forgive him.

Ladybug humored him for almost an hour, answering question after question as they sat and talked and people-watched at the café.

Slowly but surely, Adrien became increasingly certain that he knew who the elusive girl behind the mask was. There was still a part of him that worried it was merely wishful thinking, but the more they talked, the more breadcrumbs she unknowingly dropped until he wanted to scream in jubilation because he had finally found her, and she had been right in front of him the entire time.

They continued their stroll around Montmartre, looping around until they came back to Sacré-Coeur. They leisurely made their way down the hill, arm-in-arm, chatting and enjoying the brisk autumn evening.

When they arrived at the Place Saint-Pierre, Adrien spotted [the carrousel](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KS2do4evjn8), and his eyes lit up. Slowly, he turned to look at Ladybug and casually inquired, “Is it uncool for adults to ride a carrousel, do you think?”

She tried not to laugh as she smiled indulgently. “Adrien, if you want to ride the carrousel, we can ride the carrousel.”

His eyebrows dipped into a slight frown. “Are you sure? We don’t have to. I don’t want to make you do something embarrassing. I mean, I know carrousels are for little kids, so—”

“—Adrien,” she cut him off with a fond chuckle, pulling him gently yet firmly by the arm towards the merry-go-round. “It’s fine. There’s a carousel by my house that I ride with the kids I babysit all the time. I’m not embarrassed. It’s _fun_.”

“Oh,” he breathed, recalling the park next to Tom and Sabine’s bakery. “Okay. If you’re sure. I mean…”

She stopped and turned to look him full in the face, inquiring earnestly, “Adrien, do you want to ride the carrousel?”

He nodded. “I used to really love them when I was a kid. My mom and I would ride the one over by the Eiffel Tower sometimes when we snuck out to have adventures, so…yeah. I’d like to ride it.”

“Okay.” She gave him an encouraging smile and squeezed his hand, guiding him over to the merry-go-round. “You pick our horses. Whichever one you want.”

He pursed his lips and surveyed the ride with great concentration before deciding, “If it’s okay, I’d like the black one on the outer ring of the bottom level. Would you be okay with the white one next to it?”

“Sure, but don’t you want to go to the upper tier?” she asked, a little surprised. A double decker carrousel was a bit rare, even in Paris with its many carrousels, so she would have thought that Adrien would have taken advantage of the opportunity to ride on the upper deck.

He blushed as he averted his eyes. “I mean, the upper level would be cool, but all of those horses are single file, and I’d rather ride on the lower level and be next to you.”

“I can’t take it,” she confessed, catching him off guard.

“I’m sorry,” he quickly apologized, fearing he’d done something wrong. “I didn’t mean to. What can’t you take?”

She shook her head, face absolutely magenta. “No. No. I mean…you’re trying to kill me with how sweet and perfect you are,” she attempted to explain through her flustered state. “Like, everything that comes out of your mouth is like some line out of a romance novel, and you are just too cute and too sweet, and I’m going to overheat and die because I like you so much.”

His eyes went wide momentarily in shock at her bluntness, but then a wide smirk slowly spread across his lips.

She clapped a hand over her mouth, gasping at her unintended forwardness. “Oh my gosh,” she breathed, a giddy laugh rising in her throat. “I can’t believe I just said that.”

“Me either,” he hummed, clearly pleased with himself and her and life in general.

“I’ve been trying to say something like that to you for seven years now,” she snorted.

“And I’ve been waiting just as long to hear it,” he assured, leaning in to kiss her temple.

“How are you so smooth?” she groaned through a broad grin of her own.

He shrugged and looped his arm through hers, leading her over to their mounts. “I consume an indecent amount of shoujo manga and romance novels,” he confessed. “It’s rubbed off on me over the years.”

“And here I thought it was natural talent,” she snickered.

“I’m sure there’s a certain amount of that as well,” he hummed happily, giving her a hand up before ascending himself.

The sun began to dip low towards the horizon, and Ladybug tugged Adrien inconspicuously into an alley so that they could take to the sky on her yoyo without anyone seeing her take off.

“I’ve got one last surprise for you,” she informed, carrying him back towards the heart of the city.

“Is that surprise that you’re kidnapping me and never making me go home ever again?” he inquired hopefully, knowing that the bliss he’d felt with her the past few hours was coming to an unavoidable end.

“I wish,” she snorted. “If I could, I would definitely keep you, but I don’t think even Ladybug could get away with kidnapping Adrien Agreste. Your father would have my neck.”

“Unfortunately, you’re probably right,” he sighed, letting his head come to rest on her shoulder. “All right. I guess all we can do is enjoy the time we have left.”

“I think you’ll enjoy this,” she chuckled. “We’re going to one of my favourite spots in all of Paris. Super exclusive with a view that can’t be beat,” she promised.

“Oh,” he breathed, realizing that she was taking him to the top of the Eiffel Tower to watch the sunset.

He wasn’t sure how to feel about that at first. Ladybug and Chat Noir had often met there to hang out and chat, and many a sunset had been watched over the years. He’d come to think of it as one of “their spots”, so the fact that Ladybug was bringing Adrien there felt like a bit of a betrayal.

But then, on the other hand, _he_ was the one who had betrayed Ladybug first by bringing Marinette there on several occasions. And if Ladybug was, in fact, Marinette, she _knew_ what Chat Noir had done.

Ultimately, he decided to be honored that Ladybug thought Adrien worthy of sharing such a special spot.

They touched down at the very top, and Ladybug gently deposited him back onto his own feet.

“Ta-da,” she chuckled, pushing a bang back out of the way as the evening breeze licked it from its place. “This is the best view I know of, so… You’re not too cold, are you?” she inquired, surveying his sweater and undershirt combo and wondering how insulating they would be against the higher winds at that altitude.

“I’m fine,” he rushed to assure. “…Unless you’re suavely trying to get me to cuddle with you. In that case, I’m freezing,” he amended with a flirty wink that made her crack up.

“Actually,” she drawled mischievously, going over to where a second wicker picnic basket had been stowed near the center of the tower. She checked inside and pulled out a thermos, two mugs, a Tom and Sabine’s takeaway box, and two blankets. “I thought it might be nippy, so I planned ahead.”

She spread one of the blankets for them to sit on and set down the thermos, mugs, and pastry box upon it, holding out the other blanket towards him. “Here you go. If you need it, I mean. I know it gets a little brisk up here in the evenings once the sun sets.”

He took the proffered blanket with a warm, “Thank you. You’re always so thoughtful, Nelle,” and sat, wrapping it around his shoulders to fight off the autumn chill.

She settled in beside him and set to work lifting the lid of the takeaway box to reveal the most perfectly baked chocolate chip cookies Adrien had ever seen before moving to unscrew the cap of the thermos, announcing, “I give you Dupain-Cheng Special Hot Chocolate—recipe known only to members of the Dupain-Cheng family.”

Adrien arched an eyebrow, grinning cockily. “Then how did you get the recipe?”

“I didn’t!” she insisted, voice pitching high in her panic. “I just ordered it from Marinette along with the cookies.”

“It was awfully nice of Marinette to cater our date,” he hummed appreciatively, leaning in to survey the chocolate chip cookies.

“I do a lot of business with Marinette,” Ladybug fibbed, pouring the hot chocolate from the thermos into the mugs. “My kwami Tikki loves her cookies, so Marinette has kind of ended up being Tikki’s preferred supplier.” She smiled sheepishly as she handed him a mug and took the other for herself.

“I am exceedingly excited to try out this super-secret hot chocolate and these Tikki-approved cookies,” he chuckled, bringing the mug up to his lips.

In truth, he had had Marinette’s cookies and Dupain-Cheng Special Hot Chocolate before when he’d spent time with Marinette over the years as Chat Noir, but Maribug didn’t need to know that yet.

He purred happily as the chocolate washed over his tongue, coating his mouth in the rich, luscious taste of the special blend of spices Marinette was so secretive about. “This is amazing,” he praised. “What do you think I’d have to do to get the recipe because this is to die for.”

Ladybug gave a snort, sipping smugly from her own mug. “Marry Marinette.”

“Don’t tempt me,” he snickered. “The hot chocolate recipe would only be the icing on the metaphorical cake, if you’ll excuse the baking pun.”

“Try the cookies,” she urged, turning her head so that he hopefully didn’t notice her rampant blush and the way she couldn’t hold in an effulgent grin.

“Don’t have to tell me twice,” he assured, helping himself and then savoring the way the cookie almost melted on his tongue.

“…By the way,” he thought to ask a minute later, “how did this stuff get up here? There’s no way you could have dropped it off before our date. The hot chocolate wouldn’t still be hot.”

“I actually called in a favor from a friend,” she confessed. “The new Turtle hero, Michelangelo, picked up the basket from Marinette’s house and dropped it off here for me.”

Adrien blinked slowly as his brain tried to process what she was saying. “New…Turtle hero?”

She nodded. “Chat Noir has been pestering me about adding another full-time member, and I finally decided he was right, so we’re bringing Michelangelo on for a probationary trial period.”

Adrien had to keep a tight grip on his poker face to ensure that he didn’t react to this news because it sounded like Ladybug had brought Nino back onto the team like Chat Noir had asked but made him leave the Carapace identity behind so that no one would suspect that the “new” Turtle hero was really the same holder who had had his identity compromised six years prior.

“Oh, cool,” Adrien remarked in as neutral-to-positive a tone as he could manage. “I think that’ll be good. I’m glad that someone else will be out there watching your back.”

“I’m actually bringing him on to watch Chat Noir’s back because _he_ already has mine…maybe a little too much,” she sighed, brow creasing in worry as she thought about her partner.

Adrien set down his mug and reached out to take her hand, squeezing it supportively. “Hey. It’s okay. I know sometimes that it doesn’t feel like it, but…it’s okay, Nelle.”

She smiled weakly, returning the hand squeeze. “Thanks.”

“Here.” He scooted in closer, unfolding the blanket she had given him and draping it over both of their shoulders. “Is this okay?” he inquired, slipping an arm around her waist.

“Yeah,” she confirmed with a tired sigh, letting go and resting her head on his shoulder. “This is perfect. …Thanks.”

“Any time,” he whispered, leaning his cheek against the top of her head. “I know you’re tough, but you don’t always have to be around me. It’s okay not to be invincible and perfect. It’s okay to just be a twenty-year-old girl trying to make it all work.”

“Thanks,” she repeated softly, sinking into him.

They watched the sun gradually float towards the horizon for a while in contented silence as they snuggled and enjoyed their cookies and hot chocolate.

“…What are you humming?” Ladybug inquired curiously some time later.

Adrien gave a start and pulled back. “Oh. Sorry. I…I spend a lot of time alone, so I’ve developed the bad habit of talking and singing to myself. Sometimes I don’t even realize I’m doing it,” he explained sheepishly, cheeks going as red as her dress in embarrassment.

“Oh, no. Don’t be sorry,” she entreated with a kind smile. “I was just asking because it’s pretty and I wanted to know what song it was. Your humming is lovely, and lots of people do that. Chat Noir, for one, is always singing under his breath to himself, so it’s not uncommon or weird at all.”

He tried not to grimace as a part of him wished she would just see Chat Noir inside of Adrien already.

“Oh? Chat Noir does too?” he forced himself to chuckle.

She nodded completely unsuspectingly as she asked again, “What song were you humming?”

“Have you seen the movie Tangled?” he inquired even though he had shown it to Marinette himself when he’d learned that she’d never watched it before.

“Mmhm,” she affirmed as a rosy blush spread across her cheeks. She looked down at the blanket with a fond smile. “A good friend of mine is a bit of a Disney afficionado. He kind of flipped out and strapped me down and made me watch it when he found out I’d never seen it.”

He grimaced at her description. “Was this a positive experience or torture?” he had to wonder.

“Oh, no! It was fun!” she insisted, wide-eyed, flailing her hands and nearly upsetting the hot chocolate mugs and the cookies. “I had fun.”

“Oh, good,” he laughed in relief. “Otherwise, I’d have to say that maybe you shouldn’t be friends with this guy. He sounds kind of extreme.”

“No,” she hurried to correct his misconception. “Watching the movie was completely voluntary. He…He’s a good friend.” Her voice dipped low with feeling and softened as she added, “He’s very important to me.”

“Oh,” Adrien breathed, his own cheeks starting to glow. “That’s…good. I’m glad,” he replied genuinely.

There was a beat, and then he cleared his throat. “…Well, the song is [I See the Light](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKPK6c0mKE0) from Tangled, so…”

“Will you sing it for me?” she asked so earnestly he couldn’t refuse.

“You want me to serenade you, Nelle?” he chuckled, eyebrows dancing jocosely.

She nodded eagerly. “Please? I really love your voice.”

“Is that the only thing you love?” he teasingly fished, holding out hope.

She rolled her eyes, blushing as she gave him a playful shove and commanded, “Sing.”

He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and obediently began the song, tenderly and vulnerably, “All those days watching from the windows…all those years outside looking in…”

He sang in English, so she struggled to understand some parts, but the lyrics didn’t really matter to her. She could feel the emotions in his voice as he sang of being isolated and lost and then suddenly finding where he was meant to be.

He opened his eyes and stared into hers, and she couldn’t help but be drawn into him, losing herself in his song as he confessed, “And at last I see the light…and it’s warm and real and bright…now that I see you.”

He stopped singing then and smiled bashfully, reaching up to cup her cheek in his hand as he whispered, “Ladybug?”

“Hm?” she blinked dreamily, still swimming in his piercing peridot eyes.

“I need to tell you something. You’re not going to understand,” he informed sadly, his thumb stroking her cheekbone. “And you’re not going to think that I’m serious because what I’m about to say is going to sound impossible, but please know that I’m telling the truth.”

“Adrien?” she replied uncertainly, brow beginning to crease in confusion. “What is it?”

“I love you,” he breathed with a tortured smile. “I love you more than anything, and being here with you is a dream come true.”

She gasped, stunned by his heartfelt confession, mind spinning as he began to lean in, his eyes slowly drifting closed.

The clear choice was to let him kiss her. The _obvious_ course of action was to wrap her arms around him and kiss his face off like she’d dreamed of doing for more than half a decade now.

But, in that moment, no matter how romantic the set up, it didn’t feel right.

Alya had a point.

Ladybug was misleading Adrien by not telling him the whole truth, and, however much he liked Marinette, he was bound to be upset when he found out who was behind the mask because she wasn’t being honest with him, and how was that going to provide a foundation upon which to build a relationship?

She pulled back and looked away, hating herself for what she was doing to him.

“Sorry,” she whispered, the word sounding hollow even to her own ears. “I just don’t think it’s fair to you, not knowing who you’re kissing.”

He bit his lip, mentally debating how much she’d freak out if he told her he was ninety-nine percent certain that he knew exactly whom he’d been about to kiss.

“Knowing your name isn’t important,” he responded gently instead, resting his hand on top of hers. “What really matters is knowing who you are as a person. I _know_ you, Ladybug, and I know what I want.”

She winced, averting her eyes and turning her head further.

He froze. “…Unless…Oh my gosh. I’m so sorry,” he rushed to apologize as a realization made him feel sick. “I didn’t even stop to think that you might not want to kiss me. Please forgive me. I didn’t mean to—”

“—No!” she interrupted, grabbing his hand and turning back to face him. “No, Adrien, I _definitely_ want to kiss you. You didn’t do anything wrong. _I_ did.”

“Ladybug, no,” he tried to protest, but she shook her head and wouldn’t listen.

“No,” she repeated decidedly. “I’m the one who messed up by asking you out as Ladybug in the first place. None of this has been fair to you, and I’m really sorry, Adrien,” she sighed.

A twinge of guilt struck him as he was reminded of the very similar ways in which he wasn’t being completely honest with her. “Ladybug…that’s not…” he tried ineffectually.

She shook her head, her mind made up. “I’m sorry. I think maybe I should take you home now.”

“Please, no,” he pleaded weakly. “I don’t want this to be over yet.”

“Me either,” she agreed melancholically. “But we need to get you home before they notice you’re missing.”

He didn’t bother voicing the fact that, likely, no one had noticed that he’d been gone for hours and no one was likely to discover his absence now.

Instead, he reluctantly submitted, helping her clean up and then obediently slipping his arms around her so that she could carry him back to the lonely Agreste Mansion just a few blocks away.

He tried to concentrate on the way she held him, the warmth of her against the chill of the wind as it whipped against them, every point of contact between their bodies, the scent of her oatmeal body wash and strawberry shampoo melding with the faint, lingering scent of bakery.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think this chapter was the most fun part of the Ladrien date. I enjoyed getting to mentally revisit Montmartre. I've only been there twice and didn't get to explore it as fully as I would have liked. Still, I think these snapshots of them walking around and having different experiences on their date was fun.
> 
> Did you have a favourite part? Which scene did you like best? Which of the three Ladrien date chapters did you like best? I think this one is my favourite. ^.^; I'm curious what you guys thought. Even if you don't like the Ladrien side of the Love Square, was this interesting? I think this chapter is more relaxed and fun because they're becoming more comfortable with one another.
> 
> Next up is the finale, so I hope you'll look forward to it. I'll see you again on Tuesday, 12/29/2020.
> 
> Take care everyone! Leave me a comment because I would love to know what you thought. ^.^ Thanks for reading!
> 
> References:  
> The Shining: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shining_(film)  
> Psycho: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psycho_(1960_film)  
> Shining Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S014oGZiSdI  
> Kaguya-hime: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tale_of_the_Bamboo_Cutter  
> Accordion Sous le Ciel de Paris: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlQMxkdWcSo  
> Pyre: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyre_(video_game)  
> Titanic: Adventure Out of Time: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanic:_Adventure_Out_of_Time  
> The Missing: J.J. MacField and the Island of Memories: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Missing:_J.J._Macfield_and_the_Island_of_Memories  
> Montmartre Carousel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KS2do4evjn8  
> I See the Light: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKPK6c0mKE0


	13. The Revelation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alya defeats the Love Square.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! Happy the end of 2020! Welcome to my last update of the year and the conclusion of Drunk Ladybug. Thank you all so much for sticking with me through this with the ever-increasing chapter count. ^.^; I'm so glad that so many people have enjoyed this story. Thank you for all of your lovely comments, your encouraging kudos, and for bookmarking the story to share with others. I really appreciate your support.
> 
> I hope you enjoy the chapter!

“Here we are. Safe and sound,” Ladybug announced with forced chipperness as she set Adrien back down in his room.

Reluctantly, he removed his arms from around her and stepped back, doing his best to put on his own fake smile.

“Today was really fun,” he remarked with a lightness he didn’t feel.

“Yeah,” she agreed enthusiastically, but the joviality didn’t make it to her eyes. “I had fun too. I’m so glad you enjoyed it.”

“I did,” he affirmed earnestly. “It was really great, and I seriously appreciate you going to the trouble of organizing all that for me. I’m never going to forget today.”

“Me either,” she whispered, a bit of the false cheer wearing off, revealing the bittersweet melancholy hiding below the surface. “I had such a good time getting to know you better.”

“Me too.” He braced for impact as he added, “We should do it again sometime.”

She winced, averting her eyes. “Adrien… I’d love to, but we can’t. It was madness for me to even think of dating you as Ladybug in the first place.” She looked back to him with pleading, desperate eyes. “This is too dangerous. Like I said before, I don’t know what all Papillon is willing to do to get to me, but…I would never forgive myself if my selfishness and carelessness got you hurt. We’re lucky no one recognized us today and posted pictures where Papillon could see and start targeting you.”

“I know,” he sighed, gaze dropping to their shoes. “I don’t care about the risk for myself, but…I would never want to bring that kind of guilt on you if something did happen…. This wasn’t a good idea.”

“No,” she agreed softly, stepping in closer and taking his cheeks in her hands, making him look at her. “But today was the best mistake of my life, Adrien Agreste, and I can’t bring myself to regret it.”

“Yeah?” he breathed, letting himself get entranced by her swirling, sea-like eyes.

“Yeah,” she confirmed, smile infused with light and warmth and love.

“Well,” he chuckled, taking heart in looking on the bright side. “At least you can still ask me out as a civilian. This doesn’t have to be the end.”

Her smile flickered and faded as her brow pulled into a conflicted frown. “Adrien…I don’t think that’s possible now.”

Her words were like a cold shower, sending a jolt through his system.

“Wait. What? Why not?” he demanded, a whine creeping into his voice.

She gazed at him sadly, shaking her head. “What are you going to think the next time some black-haired girl comes up to you and asks you out for coffee? You’ll know it’s me right away, and that _can’t_ happen. I have to keep my identity secret at all costs, not just for myself and my own safety but for the safety of all of Paris and the Miraculouses and kwamis in my keeping. I have to think about the bigger picture,” she informed him ruefully, feeling the weight of her yoke of duty then more than ever. “I can’t just think about myself…so this has to be the end of this. I’m sorry, Adrien.”

It occurred to him that he could simply ask Marinette out, but the unfairness of the entire situation agitated him.

“If you’re not allowed to think about yourself, who’s going to?” he challenged. “This isn’t right. It’s not fair that you have to bear such a heavy burden alone. I know what it’s like to have to keep secrets from everyone, Ladybug. It’s exhausting and isolating, and, after a while, it makes you feel like a bad person because you feel like you’re always lying to everybody in your life. I don’t want that for you.”

He eyed her pleadingly, willing her to relax her guard and let him in, let him be there to help support her.

“I don’t really want that for me either,” she admitted with a tired sigh, tears beginning to build at the corners of her eyes. “…Sometimes it just can’t be helped, though. I’m sorry, Adrien, but I can’t do this. Please don’t make this harder than it already is,” she begged, just barely managing to resist the temptation he offered.

He could see her on the edge of breaking, but pressing her further felt wrong and manipulative. He didn’t want to push her into something she would later regret, so he backed off with a soft, “Okay. Sorry.”

“Me too,” she whispered, her hands dropping to take his and give them a squeeze. “…Maybe the stars will align and we’ll get to date someday.”

“Maybe I’ll find you and ask you out first,” he hummed impishly.

“Please don’t try to find me,” she entreated, feeling sick with worry. “You can’t know who I am.”

He bit his tongue, knowing that it would only scare her off to tell her he already knew.

“Kiss me,” Adrien pleaded.

Ladybug blinked, startled by the urgency in his voice. “What?”

“If this really has to be the end of things between us, can’t you at least kiss me? You said that you wanted to earlier. If we can’t be together, can’t we at least have this much?” he reasoned. “Give me a kiss to remember you by.”

She worried at her bottom lip as she studied him carefully, weighing her options.

“Please, Nelle?” he whimpered, and his yearning gaze nearly did her in.

Reasoning that one kiss couldn’t hurt, she stepped in, taking his face gently in her hands and bringing it down to hers.

She’d intended the kiss to be brief and sweet like cherry blossom petals floating on a river, but she did not anticipate the spark she felt inside of her when her lips met his.

It was like an electric zap radiating through her body from the tips of her toes to the ends of her hair, and, judging by the way he gasped into the kiss, Adrien felt it too.

What Ladybug had intended to be a chaste brush of lips quickly devolved into a sloppy, hungry crush of lips and tongues and teeth and hands.

Before she could really think through what she was doing, she’d pushed Adrien back and down onto his couch and was on top of him, seeing what kind of noises he made when she bit, licked, or sucked on different parts of his neck and throat. She quickly found out that he purred when she massaged his scalp, and the sound only encouraged her.

“Wait,” Adrien gasped, getting a hold of himself several minutes later.

She lifted her head and blinked blearily down at him, mind hazy with hormones. “What happened? What’s wrong?”

“I can’t lie to you anymore,” he groaned. “I’m sorry. I know this isn’t what you want, but things have gone too far and gotten out of control. I can’t keep secrets from you anymore, My Lady.”

She opened her mouth to seek clarification, but he alleviated the need by calling, “Plagg, transform me.”

In a green flash of light, it was Chat Noir beneath her on the couch in place of Adrien.

“I’m so sorry,” he repeated, eyes begging for her forgiveness. “I shouldn’t have agreed to go on a date with you right after we’d _just_ talked about waiting to start a romantic relationship until it was safe, but…when you showed up to ask me out, I figured that Adrien must have been your mystery boy all along, and it was just a dream come true, so…I should have said no, but I didn’t. I’m sorry. You know I think with my heart far more often than with my head.”

Ladybug did not respond right away. She was too busy gaping at her partner with her mouth hanging wide open as her mind bluescreened.

“Please say something,” he pleaded through a grimace, starting to feel ill. “I can tell you’re not taking this well, but—”

She cut him off with a guttural curse.

He blinked at her for a moment, and then a sly grin slowly curled up the corners of his lips. “On a first date? I’m sorry, but I’m a little old fashioned. You’ll have to marry me first.”

“Oh my God,” she groaned, covering her face with her hands as she had a mental meltdown.

He winced. “Sorry. I really am sorry. …On a completely serious note, are you okay?”

A muffled, “No,” leaked out through her fingers along with very Marinette-like sounds of despair.

“Sorry,” he repeated. “I didn’t mean for this to happen. I just…I really did understand earlier when you were talking about it being unfair to Adrien, him not knowing your identity. I felt guilty for keeping this from you this whole time, but I knew you didn’t want to know, so…” He shook his head. “But I couldn’t keep lying to you. …Sorry for messing things up,” he summarized dejectedly, ears drooping.

“…Do you hate me?” he whispered, half afraid to learn the answer.

She dropped her hands down to her sides and looked at him with eyes full of sorrow, compassion, regret, and love. “Chaton, I could never hate you. _Ever_ ,” she stressed, reaching out to stroke his cheek. “In fact, I think I love you now more than ever before.”

“O-Oh,” he choked, so happy it was hard to breathe.

“And you didn’t mess anything up,” she assured with a cloudy smile. “ _I_ did.”

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. “Detransformation.”

In a swirl of pink, Marinette appeared, wearing the same [blue dress](https://us.shein.com/Ruched-Detail-A-line-Dress-p-1248373-cat-1727.html) as she had their last movie night.

A broad grin stretched across Chat’s lips as he sat up, taking her face in his hands.

She hesitantly peeked one eye open and was surprised to find him beaming at her like she had arranged the stars in the night sky. She blinked, noting, “You don’t look surprised. Or angry.”

“Because I’m neither, Princess,” he chuckled, running a hand down the side of her face, neck, and shoulder. “What better outcome could I hope for than for the two girls I’m crazy about to be the same person?”

“And, let me guess,” she snickered. “You’re not surprised because you were able to see Ladybug in your ‘Everyday Ladybug’?”

He bit his lip. “Actually…it was more like suddenly seeing Marinette in Ladybug earlier today when we were browsing in the Place du Tertre.”

The grin dropped off her face. “What?! Wait. What?! You figured out my identity?!”

He made a half-hearted, wobbling gesture with one hand. “I mean…sort of? I didn’t know for sure until just now, but…”

“Oh my gosh. All those questions you were asking!” she gasped as she mentally reviewed their day from that point.

He winced. “Yeah, well…I mean…”

She slapped his arm, and not in a fun, playful, joking away. “I can’t believe you! You were purposely trying to figure out my identity!”

“To be fair, I had already figured out your identity,” he reasoned, hoping she magically accepted this loophole and decided not to be mad at him. “I was merely seeking confirmation.”

She smacked his arm a second time, clearly not amused at his semantics.

“Hey, you’ve been in love with me for years and never said anything,” he whined, trying to shift the focus off of himself. “To Adrien _or_ Chat Noir. If anyone has the right to be upset, it’s me.”

“I had my reasons,” she spluttered indignantly, hoping he wouldn’t ask for the receipts. “It’s not like you told Marinette you had a big, ridiculous crush on her either!”

“I’m sorry,” he snorted. “I just thought it was painfully obvious to anyone who listened to me rant regularly about how amazing and talented you are. If you’d shown interest in return, I would have gladly confessed to my gigantic crush on you, but, unfortunately, someone has been lying to my face the past seven years about how they’re not interested in _me_ , they’re just a fan of my father’s work,” he returned with a sour pout.

“You are literally a model,” she whined in her own defence. “I thought you’d laugh in my face.”

“Princess,” he cooed, reaching up to stroke her face. “Who could say no to you?”

He leaned in to give her hair a reassuring nuzzle. “Marinette, you are the most awe-inspiring woman I know. You’re kind and brave and funny and gorgeous, and I would have to be a bigger fool than I already am not to fall deliriously in love with you.”

She wrapped her arms around him, holding him tight as she whispered, “I’m so sorry, Minou.”

“Shhh,” he comforted, pulling her in closer. “I’m sorry too. Maybe…can we try to accept that we both screwed things up and attempt to move beyond this?”

“…Yeah,” she decided, giving a little nod. “What’s done is done, so let’s just try to do our best going forward.”

“Sounds good,” he agreed, savoring the warmth of her body pressed to his, her sweet scent.

Earlier, he’d catalogued them in sorrow as she carried him back home, wondering if he’d ever get to experience them again. Now, he took stock in joy, planning to appreciate these sensations for years and years to come.

Suddenly, Marinette pulled back with a gasp and stared at him wide-eyed. “What are we going to do about akuma fights?! We just talked last week about how every second counts and how romantic feelings could cloud our judgment and get in the way in battle. What are we going to do now?!”

He grimaced, beginning to massage her shoulders in hopes that it would help her calm down. “My Love, I’ve had feelings for you for years now, and you just told me the other night that you’d loved me for almost as long. We’re going to have feelings that could potentially get in the way no matter what. We’ve _had_ those feelings all this time, and I think it’s been pretty okay. I mean, I know I’ve sacrificed myself more times than you’re comfortable with, but the point is that we’ve managed all this time, haven’t we?”

“I guess you’re right,” she reluctantly agreed, slowly coming to see that what he said was true.

“Yes, we could have a fight or, God forbid, break up, but I’d like to think that our friendship and our partnership is strong enough to see us through, so…we’ve gone years suffering through trying to suppress our feelings, I, for one, would like to try making a romantic relationship work,” he suggested timidly, mentally crossing his fingers. “Who knows? Maybe when we stop holding ourselves back, we’ll be a better team than ever before. Want to give it a try?”

She didn’t need to think about it. “Yes. Definitely. Yes.”

“Really?” he laughed in joy and relief as his wildest dreams came true before his very eyes.

She nodded enthusiastically, joining in his laughter. “Yes. Really, really.”

He surged forward, capturing her lips once more in an exuberant kiss of celebration.

This one was more playful, less heated, but still full of fireworks and emotion.

Several minutes in, Marinette pulled back and glared at Chat Noir. “Heeeey. You sneak into my bedroom. Adrien Agreste sneaks into my bedroom.”

He quirked an eyebrow, wondering at the relevance of this revelation. “Technically, you invite me in. I always knock, even when the skylight is open.”

“Adrien Agreste has seen the inside of my bedroom,” she groaned in embarrassment, covering her face with her hands and letting out a moan of misery. “You’ve seen me in my laundry day sweatpants!”

He rolled his eyes fondly, gingerly taking her hands in his own and prying them away from her face. “Princess, look at me.”

She did so, her cheeks stained red as realization after realization informed her of all the unflattering sides of her he had seen.

“It’s just me,” he soothed. “Just your big, stupid cat, and I think the world of you.”

She pursed her lips, considering this for a moment. “…Yeah. You are, aren’t you?”

He nodded encouragingly. “Remember that time I got my tongue stuck to that lamppost?”

She burst out laughing, accidentally spraying him with spit which he gracefully wiped off, not minding in the least.

“Oh my gosh,” she giggle-snorted. “You _did_. You’re such a dork!”

“Your dork,” he confirmed.

“My dork,” she hummed and went back to kissing him.

They didn’t make it ten minutes before the next outburst.

“I tried to give you the Snake Miraculous!” she gasped.

Chat’s ears flattened. “We’re going to be having moments like this for years to come, aren’t we?”

“What the hell were you thinking?!” she demanded.

He shrugged. “You said you needed Adrien. I’m stupid in love with you. Emphasis on the stupid.”

She frowned, debating on her reaction. His reasons weren’t exactly good, but they were flattering, so maybe she could forgive him.

He took the liberty of kissing the crinkles from her brow. “Later, you’ll have to tell me how you pulled Multimouse off because I’m dying to know, but, for now, could we maybe kiss and snuggle? Maybe watch some movies?”

She instantly perked up. “Can we have a Disney singalong? I’m sort of in love with your voice.”

“Just the voice?” he asked again with a teasing eyebrow waggle.

“All of you,” she informed softly, leaning in to press a butterfly kiss to his lips. “…But your voice in particular.”

“I can live with that,” he cackled, pulling her back down onto the couch with him.

Alya and Nino were lounging on her bed watching [X-Men: Apocalypse](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X-Men:_Apocalypse) when her phone buzzed.

“Why are you grinning like you just got the biggest scoop ever?” Nino inquired cautiously, lifting a suspicious eyebrow.

“My ship has sailed!” Alya cheered, nearly jumping for joy. “Adrien and Marinette are dating! Aaaaaahhhh!!! This is the best day ever!”

Nino frowned, pausing the movie. “Wait. Adrien’s dating Marinette or Ladybug? They should still be at the Eiffel Tower, right? Did she tell him her identity? Did he tell her his?”

Alya’s mood immediately plummeted. “Hold on. Let me figure this out.”

She shot quick texts to Marinette and Adrien, asking if they’d revealed their respective identities and who was dating whom.

“Okay. Full identity reveal. Everybody is dating everybody,” Alya reported with a contented sigh, sinking back down onto the bed. “These two are exhausting.”

“Tell me about it,” Nino snorted. “Why do they have to be so complicated?”

Alya shook her head. “Thank God Marinette locked us in the panther cage, right?”

“We never really thanked her for that, did we?” Nino snickered.

Alya shrugged. “Meh. I’ll work it into my maid of honor speech at her wedding. I consider my debt paid in full after all the identity shenanigans I’ve had to put up with getting her and Adrien together. I single-handedly defeated the Love Quadrilateral. My job here is done.”

“Awesome work, Al,” Nino chuckled, leaning in to give her temple a light peck.

The

End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope the conclusion was satisfactory. ^.^; What did you think? Did you have a favourite part or a favourite line? How about the story overall? Did you have a favourite chapter or scene or character interaction? Description? Line of dialogue?
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the story. I did! This was actually a lot of fun. I'll have to see if I can do more Alyadrien friendship later. I think that was my favourite part. I think I should stick to mainly Marichat and Adrienette, though. ^.^; Writing Ladrien was definitely a challenge. I don't know if I did it justice, honestly, but thank you all for reading.
> 
> A special thanks to the anon on Tumblr who sent in the Alyabug balcony scene prompt in the first place. Thank you as well to everyone who encouraged me to expand the work, especially MyneanRebel.
> 
> Take care everyone. Have a lovely and safe New Year's, and I hope to see you again in 2021. ^.^
> 
> References:  
> Marinette’s Dress: https://us.shein.com/Ruched-Detail-A-line-Dress-p-1248373-cat-1727.html  
> X-Men: Apocalypse: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X-Men:_Apocalypse

**Author's Note:**

> Come follow me on [Tumblr](https://mikauzoran.tumblr.com/).


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